Demolition, Renovations On Deck As Springfield Makes Way For MGM

SPRINGFIELD The last obstacle removed, MGM Springfield moved forward Wednesday morning with plans to transform three city blocks into an $800 million gambling resort.

Contractors drilled for soil samples at the site of a closed school on Howard Street. It was only hours after state voters rejected a referendum that would have barred casinos in the Bay State.

There's plenty of work to be done, and a 33-month construction window.

Old brick buildings will be razed. Construction will follow, beginning with a parking garage, and ending in August 2017 with the first customers coming through sometime between that August and February 2018.

The 141/2-acre site in downtown Springfield's South End is a mix of historic landmarks, low-slung retail buildings and empty parking lots. Several small businesses along Main Street will close in December, clearing out before demolition begins this winter.

"There won't be much time delay in terms of actually having to do things, because remember, demolition comes first and while the demolition is happening, design will be ongoing and interaction with the city will be ongoing," said Springfield's chief development officer, Kevin Kennedy.

The city is expecting to improve water and sewer pipes near the site as part of the construction, he said.

The site is roughly a rectangle bordered by Columbus Avenue and Union, Main and State streets. Some buildings slated for demolition were renovated after a June 2011 tornado ripped through the neighborhood. The scars of that storm are still evident today. Buildings are boarded up, left unrepaired. Apartments are still being renovated.

MGM Springfield is planning to adapt some historic buildings for reuse in the company's urban casino plan.

For example, the eight-story former Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Building, constructed in 1908 at Main and State streets, will be refurbished as administrative offices for MGM Springfield. The limestone building, with its Classical Revival design, was the tallest steel office structure in Springfield when it was built, which generated controversy at the time and led to building-height restrictions that lasted until the 1970s.

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Demolition, Renovations On Deck As Springfield Makes Way For MGM