SENATOR MICHAEL R. KNAPIK
This past weekend in Westfield, we finally had a taste of spring and witnessed the start of what will likely be a great new tradition in our hometown, the Run Westfield Flat 5K. Hats off to all who participated and enjoyed the grand block party. It seems we are always embarking on new and exciting opportunities like this for the citizens in our community.
And, that is essential as we navigate the challenging fiscal and social terrain of these early years of the 21st Century.
Each Saturday, this newspaper features an article which chronicles a moment in Westfield’s nearly 350 year history. The story is always fascinating to read, whether it is about the floods and snow storms of centuries past, our budding industry, Westfield during the war years, or simply about the proud people who have lived here. Periodically, local correspondents share memories of their childhood and growing up in Westfield. I enjoy the nostalgic look back as much as other readers.
I recently came across a video clip on Facebook entitled, “Westfield, You are the Stars,” a home movie taken in downtown during the early 1940s. There is no sound but you can sense the hustle and bustle of business folks, shoppers, children and others throughout the movie. The city is probably like most in the early war years… busy, active, and relevant. The cameraman takes you on a tour of some Westfield’s sites and focuses quite a bit on the locals, shoppers, firemen, businessmen, and the legendary mayor, Alice “Ma” Burke.
My earliest memories go back to the late 1960s. At age 6, I remember viewing the Tri-Centennial Parade that commemorated the 300 years since the establishment of the town of Westfield. I remember a time before McDonalds came to town. I remember taking my paper route money (sorry, the other paper, though I was the Pat Berry’s family’s paperboy) down to J.J. Newberry’s to shop for my brothers’ Christmas presents. I have vague memories of being wheeled on a wagon to downtown by my grandmother, shopping for shoes or buying my Cub Scout supplies in the basement of the Cute Kiddie store. I can recall attending the early Boys Club at the site of Romani’s bowling center. My older brother and I would go there while our dad bowled with the public school league. But these are all distant memories now.
So, as I think of Westfield today in my capacity as a State Legislator and in the context of the city’s long and proud past, I know there is an urgency and imperative that deserves our understanding and action.
No longer are we that fur-trading station settled as Woronoco in the early 1640’s, nor are we the small town that sent militia men to join up with other Revolutionaries at Lexington and Concord, nor are we the grand Whip City where, at one time, over 80 percent of the world’s whips were manufactured. The proud Columbia Manufacturing Company has morphed from making bicycles to building some of the finest school furniture in the nation, with a much smaller workforce. The foundry is no longer downtown.
It’s pretty obvious, things have changed. But then again, they always do, don’t they?
It is, though, how we embrace our past and prepare our community for the future that matters. Every generation sees its challenges and its opportunities and ours are right here before us.
I am excited about that future. We have already seen the major transformation in Westfield’s infrastructure with the investment of nearly $100 million in road, bridge, and streetscape improvements, changing sightlines and gateway entrances from the east and the north. The center city improvements, with more to come, made possible with federal, state, and local funding will reinvigorate the heart of our commercial and civic center, the very point where the militia once mustered and cows once grazed.
And, of course, the city looks different today because this is a different time. There are no canals, the railroad no longer pulls commerce north to south, but there is an exciting bike trail coming that will link Connecticut, Southwick, and the outlying neighborhoods to the downtown in a new and innovative way, stressing recreation and a return to the mighty river. A river that was once viewed as an obstacle and tool for industrialization is now viewed as an asset and vital resource. The Great Westfield River is back!
The city received excellent news this week on the long-awaited Council on Aging project that will serve Westfield’s elders for years to come. The new downtown neighborhood school that will serve hundreds of our city’s families for generations to come and provide a modern 21st Century learning environment, is one of the most exciting projects, in my opinion.
And how visionary was the great Horace Mann in establishing what is now known as Westfield State University, which has been an integral part of our community for generations. (I know it was in Barre, MA first.) The fact that there are only nine state universities in Massachusetts and one of them is within the bounds of our city cannot be overstated. WSU is making new investment in downtown, students are becoming an increasing economic presence throughout Westfield, and the value coming from the university will continue to enhance this city.
But why do anything more? Some have said that we have overdone the infrastructure improvements, that we don’t need new schools, (or that one,) and that the university can be intrusive. Well, problems can always be addressed, but most importantly and more urgently, a strong Westfield is critical for the future of the Pioneer Valley and Western Massachusetts. It goes well beyond cone-zone delays and other inconveniences, though I do not mean to minimize them.
We are past a time when decision-makers in Washington or Boston held most of the cards and could influence destinies within cities and towns. I often say to local officials that the future is what they make of it. They must control the destiny of their own community. The state and federal governments will still be willing partners and there will still be incredible revenue sharing possibilities, but WHAT happens will be hammered out locally, debates will occur, requests will be made, advocacy will ensue, and then, you hope, something positive results. Nothing is easy anymore, nothing is quick anymore, but the urgency remains and we must be impatient for results that move our city’s agenda forward. We cannot allow inertia or paralysis, or worse yet, complacency, to set in. You may ask why?
The “why” is pretty simple. The citizens we represent deserve the best from their government, one that is responsive, active, results-oriented, takes in a variety of opinions, but has as its goal to do what is in the best interest of the community.
The “why” for Westfield, in a larger sense, goes to how we are positioned in western Massachusetts. The challenges confronting our region need to be understood because they must guide our decisions.
You may have heard Westfield referred to as a Gateway City. There is certainly a nostalgic connotation to that, but what it really means is that our city, like many post-industrial centers in our state, has slipped in certain key demographics. Chief among those demographics is the measure of median household income where we have dropped below the statewide average.
We are among the richest states in the nation, but this wealth tends not to be concentrated in the Gateway Cities. So, we join 25 other cities and towns in our state that are prioritized when grant and other funding allocations occur. Moreover, these demographic shifts also impact our school system, which create certain needs that must be addressed and funded in order for our students to compete in the global economy.
In the last decade, population in Westfield grew by 1.5 percent, according to the 2010 Census and while that is positive, it is still behind the state and national averages. And, it is a long way from the robust days of population growth in Westfield during the 1950-1980 time frame where the growth was 11.5 percent, 25.5 percent, 19.5 percent, and 16 percent for each ten-year period. Believe it or not!
Our school-age population reached its historic peak in the late 1970s, closing in on 8,000 pupils. Today, our school system serves a population around 5,900 students. So, while our population has grown, the size of the school system has shrunk precipitously. Hence, there exists the need for rightsizing and making the school infrastructure more efficient. What was built for the last generation or two is simply unsustainable today with all the stress on local financing.
This demographic reality has been similarly disturbing for all of western Massachusetts. As Legislators in the west, we have had to confront the challenges of shrinking school districts, the loss of large numbers of jobs and a serious decline in populations. We are aware our state and region lost a Congressman in the last election cycle as a result of slow population growth. Incidentally, at one time, Massachusetts had 16 Congressmen representing our interests in Washington and we now have nine. What the population erosion does show is our state has important challenges of its own to face up to.
But back to Westfield, I am proud that our hometown is the largest community in western Massachusetts that has had an increase in population each decade for the past 70 years. Think about that… Westfield now ranks as the fourth largest community west of Worcester and has had a growing population for seven decades. (only Springfield, Chicopee, and Pittsfield are larger but they have all lost population during this time.)
Briefly, I would like to touch on statistics from the Pioneer Valley as we must consider the environment around us. We are not an island but we are dependent on our neighbors in other cities and towns. Our region is facing some serious challenges in the next decade. The population has remained stagnant, 47 percent of the workforce is 45 years of age or older, only 31.9 percent are under 35 year of age. The working population ages of 16-24 fell by 2,200 in 2010. Manufacturing jobs have decreased in our region by 25 percent since 2000. The Pioneer Valley has the largest percentage of citizens with high school degrees or lower of any region in Massachusetts. And, we have experienced the largest out migration of ages 16-24 of any region in our state for the 2010 census periodic. That demographic represents the future of the Pioneer Valley.
Much of the slide in western Massachusetts is linked to the availability of jobs within our region. In fact, greater Springfield is the only jobs-reporting area in all of Massachusetts that had an overall decrease in jobs in the past year. And while the nation continues to recover from the Great Recession, the recovery has been quite uneven in our state where some areas, including our own, have experienced chronically high levels of unemployment. Massachusetts, as a whole, has not created one net new job since the recession for the early 2000’s.
We must understand these challenges and we must chart a course of action. The challenges of the modern times, though, are serious and real. Companies do not need the large numbers of workers they once did, it is as simple as that.
So, the question returns… what are we to do? Doing nothing is no longer an option.
We must work together and create a pathway to reverse some of these trends. The future requires it. I call on state officials, local leaders, and constituents to work together to solve these challenges.
I do know Westfield is a great community. I am proud to have represented Westfield for many years, to be a homeowner in downtown, and to send my children to public schools. Here are some other things I am proud of.
I mentioned Westfield State University as an educational leader and a partner in economic development. The Westfield Vocational-Technical High School is reinventing itself to meet the workforce challenges of the 21st century. Noble Hospital is an employer and provider of care, close to home! We are home to the Pioneer Valley Railroad, the 104th Fighter Wing at Barnes, the National Guard Armory on Franklin Street, Western Massachusetts Hospital, Stanley Park, the Columbia Greenway, Hampton Ponds, local merchants, courageous entrepreneurs, the precision tooling industry, the scouting groups, Little League, Babe Ruth, and all recreations opportunities for young and old alike, Exit 3 of the MassPike, the Westfield River, the Business Improvement District (BID), the Chamber of Commerce, Westfield Bank, our local newspaper, the Athenaeum, our housing stock and fine neighborhoods, the Women’s Club, Westfield on Weekends, social, cultural, and ethnic clubs, the Patriotic and Veterans organizations, the Westfield River Watershed Association, Kiwanis, Rotary, the YMCA, the Boys and Girls Club, Amelia Park, the churches, the Winding River Land Trust, Genesis House, the Children’s Museum, the new Westfield Historic Museum, the Golf Courses…. you get the idea.
I know my good friend, State Representative Don Humason wears his ‘I love Westfield’ Pin to cover all of the things he is proud of and more than could possibly be listed here. I wish I could list them all.
That is the point. For nearly 350 years, Westfield has thrived and changed and reinvented itself. The shift in industry clusters from farming, construction, and heavy manufacturing to education, health care, professional services, and distribution is not unique to Westfield. The exciting promise of the creative economy has captured the attention and imagination of all.
So, I will return and finish with how I began this conversation… the future is indeed bright, but… look around… this is the Westfield we have… this is our hometown, so…
We must embrace change because it happens whether we like it or not.
We must fully use the great resources of our community, the people and the infrastructure to prepare for that future.
We must support our schools and understand the challenges they confront today which are unlike any other in our city’s history.
We must work with those who create jobs, nurture the longtime businesses that are here and encourage those that will come to our city in the future. This has to be a top priority – we need jobs for the citizens who call Westfield home.
We must have a healthy and robust debate about what to do, how to do it, and why we are doing it, but then we must do it!
If we don’t encourage innovation, opportunity, and risk in our community, if we don’t make strategic investments in our people, institutions, and infrastructure, the future will pass us by. And the next time a count of the people is taken in 2020, we just might see fewer people living here because we did not do enough this decade. And, then we become another negative statistic.
I’m excited about being a part of all this and about the opportunity you have given me over many years, but I am more excited about working with you to make Westfield a better place in the future, for all of you, for my son and daughter, because I would love for them to plant a stake in our hometown, just like 5 generations of my family has done. And, just like you have.
But we can’t take that for granted, so on to new traditions, new discussions, and a renewed purpose as to why Westfield matters. I hope you agree we are worth the fight.
