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I don't know much about Springfield. I was working there for a while, however, so I have a little experience with the city. I will say that there are pockets of neighborhoods with beautiful homes. I always found it startling to suddenly turn a corner and be driving through one. I believe that some of the city alongside Forest Park is also supposedly nice (I haven't been there, so can't say from personal experience).
I think the city has the potential for gentrification. But whether that ever happens is up for debate. The chances of that happening would go up considerably, I think, if they ever do build a railroad line to Boston. But there seems to be so many politics wrapped up in that happening that I don't know if that will ever become a reality.
I know that I, personally, would have no desire to live in Springfield, but I do think with due diligence, that decent neighborhoods can probably be found. I think a lot of research would need to be done to ensure this is the right situation though.
I don't know much about Springfield. I was working there for a while, however, so I have a little experience with the city. I will say that there are pockets of neighborhoods with beautiful homes. I always found it startling to suddenly turn a corner and be driving through one. I believe that some of the city alongside Forest Park is also supposedly nice (I haven't been there, so can't say from personal experience).
I think the city has the potential for gentrification. But whether that ever happens is up for debate. The chances of that happening would go up considerably, I think, if they ever do build a railroad line to Boston. But there seems to be so many politics wrapped up in that happening that I don't know if that will ever become a reality.
I know that I, personally, would have no desire to live in Springfield, but I do think with due diligence, that decent neighborhoods can probably be found. I think a lot of research would need to be done to ensure this is the right situation though.
The lack of rail is a huge factor. I think Springfield would be very attractive to young professionals who might only need to be in Boston 1-2 a week if they could hop an express train. I know I've been interviewing at a few companies in downtown Boston where in-office attendance is intermittent so many people who would be on my teams say they moved out to Worcester, Providence, or Portsmouth (and a 2 hour each way direct bus) during the pandemic to stretch the budget further but still get an urban environment. Springfield just doesn't rate because even once a week getting into Boston or even Worcester would be a huge struggle. There's less opportunity on-site in Springfield and Hartford.
With regard to the OP, I think many of us are thinking a little more conservatively about Springfield because she would be coming cross country without knowing anyone and with the added complication of being unable to drive. I suspect most of us don't have much experience navigating Springfield without a car (certainly as compared to Boston/Somerville/Cambridge) and the added complication of knowing where it's safe to live and where transit is both accessible and safe is beyond what most of us are familiar with. I'd have a lot less reservations if someone was transferring with their job to the area or had family locally so they had some social connections.
The lack of rail is a huge factor. I think Springfield would be very attractive to young professionals who might only need to be in Boston 1-2 a week if they could hop an express train.
Picky point-- there is one train a day in each direction from Springfield, an Amtrak to Albany and Chicago. What they'll hopefully do is restore regular service through Palmer and Worcester to Framingham and Boston. Won't be express exactly, but the Boston & Albany timetables from the 1930s show two to 2-½ hours between Springfield and Boston, depending on number of stops. If we can just restore a semblance of the service that existed 90 years ago we'd be way ahead. Your young professional going into Boston 1-2 days a week could work aboard the train, sleep, whatever. So much better than the bus!
Quote:
Originally Posted by charolastra00
With regard to the OP, I think many of us are thinking a little more conservatively about Springfield because she would be coming cross country without knowing anyone and with the added complication of being unable to drive. I suspect most of us don't have much experience navigating Springfield without a car (certainly as compared to Boston/Somerville/Cambridge) and the added complication of knowing where it's safe to live and where transit is both accessible and safe is beyond what most of us are familiar with. I'd have a lot less reservations if someone was transferring with their job to the area or had family locally so they had some social connections.
Was waiting for this thread to devolve in to reflexive poor people hate, thanks to ‘71 for playing along!
There's a woman walking down the street! Hooker!
There's a man reading a book on a stoop! Drug dealer!
I don't want to get this thread locked, so kindly ignore me. But I agree with FCMA's assessment of 71. I hope the OP will use the information we've given them to make a good decision about where they'll live. I think you can ignore some our jaded and bigotted posters.
The lack of rail is a huge factor. I think Springfield would be very attractive to young professionals who might only need to be in Boston 1-2 a week if they could hop an express train. I know I've been interviewing at a few companies in downtown Boston where in-office attendance is intermittent so many people who would be on my teams say they moved out to Worcester, Providence, or Portsmouth (and a 2 hour each way direct bus) during the pandemic to stretch the budget further but still get an urban environment. Springfield just doesn't rate because even once a week getting into Boston or even Worcester would be a huge struggle. There's less opportunity on-site in Springfield and Hartford.
With regard to the OP, I think many of us are thinking a little more conservatively about Springfield because she would be coming cross country without knowing anyone and with the added complication of being unable to drive. I suspect most of us don't have much experience navigating Springfield without a car (certainly as compared to Boston/Somerville/Cambridge) and the added complication of knowing where it's safe to live and where transit is both accessible and safe is beyond what most of us are familiar with. I'd have a lot less reservations if someone was transferring with their job to the area or had family locally so they had some social connections.
Quote:
Originally Posted by missionhill
Picky point-- there is one train a day in each direction from Springfield, an Amtrak to Albany and Chicago. What they'll hopefully do is restore regular service through Palmer and Worcester to Framingham and Boston. Won't be express exactly, but the Boston & Albany timetables from the 1930s show two to 2-½ hours between Springfield and Boston, depending on number of stops. If we can just restore a semblance of the service that existed 90 years ago we'd be way ahead. Your young professional going into Boston 1-2 days a week could work aboard the train, sleep, whatever. So much better than the bus!
Such good points.
Alright folks. I think we need a BIG timeout here. There is an abundance of beautiful and top notch places within 2.5 hours from Boston to choose from if one is semi-remote and commuting there 1-2 days a week. No (and I repeat) NO young professional is going to pick SPRINGFIELD of all places to live, if they are semi-remote and are OK being 2.5 hours from Boston. I totally get that everybody has their own version of paradise and some might not be so conventional, but will go right out and say that you need your head examined if you draw a wide circle around Boston and that filthy cesspool of a city is the best you can do as one with any means.
Last edited by massnative71; 06-14-2022 at 09:25 PM..
It seems that in your world, anyone just walking, talking or sitting outdoors is probably up to no good.
Are you gaslighting me? You didn't discover a hidden gem. There are reasons why that nice looking brownstone is only $110k. I showed you about a dozen of them. Those people "just walking, talking or sitting outdoors" very much appear to be engaging in questionable activities. And that's all happening during daylight hours. Look bro, if you really want to move there and find out just "why" the place is priced the way it is then I'm all for you finding your way. It's giving those prospective movers from afar a sugarcoated reality and false sense of security, that's totally unacceptable and I'm not going to tolerate it here.
Also, I don't understand why you felt the need to take the Lord's name in vain. I can assure you that many people would find your language to be offensive and highly inappropriate.
Alright folks. I think we need a BIG timeout here. There is an abundance of beautiful and top notch places within 2.5 hours from Boston to choose from if one is semi-remote and commuting there 1-2 days a week. No (and I repeat) NO young professional is going to pick SPRINGFIELD of all places to live, if they are semi-remote and are OK being 2.5 hours from Boston. I totally get that everybody has their own version of paradise and some might not be so conventional, but will go right out and say that you need your head examined if you draw a wide circle around Boston and that filthy cesspool of a city is the best you can do as one with any means.
I've been to their events and they're nice but I'm a bit older for the crowd at this point. You also have the valley Ventures measures which provides assistance to small businesses in an incubator like environment somewhat like Shark Tank got its own boot camp. But nonprofits and government sometimes I see those in leadership Pioneer Valley and I met many people that are alumni
The fact of the matter is the basis of your argument might have been true 15 or 20 years ago but I can provide you with amounts of evidence of the revitalization that the city has had in the region as a whole. Yes there are young professionals there. Otherwise why would we see Banking, finance and insurance there?
Look the back to the office mentality didn't pan out. First it was covid and now $5 gas. Commuting time is lost time. There's already Yale grad students living in the area and that was before covid. UMass Amherst undergrads are going as far south as Hartford for apartments.
"Many students who have graduated from UMass and from the other four colleges in the area aren’t leaving their housing accommodations, as noted by Greeney and Dettloff. This trend seems to have stemmed from the rise in remote work among students, vastly reducing the need to relocate because of one’s job."
Ct rail already is in place. It takes the same amount of time to go from Springfield to NYC then it does with Boston to NYC on high speed.
Smaller cities have gained quite a bit from the exodus.
Who would have thought 20 years ago that people from Boston would move to Brockton?
There's plenty of New Yorkers in Connecticut and practically half of Southern Berkshire County is from New York. I get it I get it a lot of people think if you want a really good job in Massachusetts if not a New England that you must work out of Boston butt that frankly is no longer true. You can have a decent life living in another urban area or by another urban area. People get buy all the time there is nothing wrong with these other areas. When I move to Western Mass I actually made more money NatWest because I found out that the riches are in the niches and if you have very specific skills they will pay you more for them rather than just discard the qualifications. Sometimes this Obsession about doing everything around Boston is just sickening. I have no reason to go to professional ball game because the quality of HGTV is pretty good. I can have access to a fair amount of domestic flights out of Bradley and even Europe. Unless I plan on going back to China I have no need to fly out of Logan.
And yes many of those people that were photographs are just doing fine you can't make a general assumption about crime or drug addiction just by looking at people.
Getting back to the original post if somebody cannot drive and wants to come to Massachusetts or New England as a whole you're better off living in or near a Gateway City. $5 a gallon gas is going to have a significant impact on the amount of services you can find in more Rural and Suburban areas.
Was waiting for this thread to devolve in to reflexive poor people hate, thanks to ‘71 for playing along!
The OP was asking about West Springfield and Chicopee. They can’t drive. I was in West Springfield a week ago. With no car and a limited rental housing budget, I could make that work. The PVTA bus route from the mall that runs down the river and then into downtown Springfield is really good service.
The pvta is the second-largest Transit Authority in Massachusetts and Peter Pan Bus has been servicing the area for Generations. If you live in West Springfield you also have access to Union Station which can take you down to Connecticut and eventually there's going to be a direct connection probably threw some shuttle bus to Bradley Airport. Between air and Rail and bus you have a fair amount of options. Route 91 traffic isn't anywhere nearly as bad as 128.
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