The University of Massachusetts will lease approximately 27,000 square feet of space at Tower Square in Springfield for its satellite campus. Watch video
SPRINGFIELD — Local officials and downtown merchants reacted with excitement and optimism on Monday as state officials formally announced that the University of Massachusetts will locate a satellite campus at Tower Square in the heart of the central district.
Gov. Deval Patrick and University of Massachusetts President Robert L. Caret were among the dignitaries who gathered in the Tower Square lobby during the noon hour to announce the plans, which entail using approximately 27,000 square feet of available space on the second floor of the office tower at 1500 Main St., as a start. The satellite campus is scheduled to open in the fall of 2014, including academic and office uses.
Christopher and John DeVoie, co-owners of the Hot Table restaurant on the ground floor of Tower Square, both said they are excited by the news.
“It’s tremendous news for Tower Square, downtown Springfield and Springfield in general,” John DeVoie said.
The DeVoies said the influx of students will bring added business to the downtown, and will hopefully spur further private investment. They would consider expanding their hours if the need is shown.
Mayor Domenic J. Sarno said that recent investments in the downtown, including the renovation and expanded use of the former federal courthouse, coupled with the plans for the satellite campus, show “things are on the move” in the city. He praised the governor and university for making the proposal a reality after years of discussion.
“It will have a ripple effect not only in the downtown but in our neighborhoods,” Sarno said.
University of Massachusetts officials said the specific plans are still being formulated, and it is too early to estimate the total number of additional students and staff that could be coming to Springfield. The university already has more than 120 programs in health, fine arts, green industries and other fields in Springfield, including a design center at Court Square, but this will be the first satellite campus, officials said.
The university will also have the right to use an additional 1,600 square feet of retail space on the first floor and will have exterior signs and a Bridge Street entrance.
Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. owns Tower Square, and will lease the space to the University of Massachusetts.
The university chose Tower Square over three other downtown area sites: the Peter Pan Bus terminal on Main Street; the 10-floor Harrison Place at 1391 Main St.; and the 17-story One Financial Plaza at 1350 Main St.
Patrick said the presence of a university or universities in the downtown of gateway communities “has been a real economic stimulus” in Massachusetts.
“It’s been true with Worcester, it’s been true in Lowell, it’s certainly true of Cambridge,” Patrick said. “Going back generations now and, adding to the presence of STCC and private colleges here, having UMass present in downtown is an enormous capstone, and an important one, on what the mayor and the rest of us are trying to do to grow opportunity in Massachusetts.”
Mischa Epstein, who operates the The Gift Shop at Tower Square as initially a seasonal business, said she would consider extending the business if the campus spurs additional patrons.
“I think anything positive we can do to enhance the city of Springfield is a good thing for us, especially people who are trying to make a place where we can put money back into our local community and buy things that are locally crafted.”
Kumble R. Subbaswamy, chancellor of UMass-Amherst, said university will evaluate where the needs exist and fill those needs in deciding what programs to bring to the Springfield campus. For example, it will evaluate the needs of MassMutual and Baystate Medical Center in filling their management and employment openings, he said.
“Because these are important employers in the area, so we need to be working closely with them,” Subbaswamy said. “That’s a starting point.”
The satellite will allow students to take courses on site and through UMassOnline, with an online office in Springfield. The university will be working in partnership with the community colleges in Springfield and Holyoke, connecting associate's degree programs with bachelor's degree programs, officials said.
Kyriakos Varypatakis, owner of Le Greque Restaurant at Tower Square and a tenant since 1982, said he is very happy to see UMass coming.
Varypatakis said the university will bring added business to a “hurting” downtown, and he will do his best to serve them well. The great majority of business in the food court comes from within the tower, he said.
“It’s a big day for Springfield,” said Kevin Kennedy, the city’s chief development officer. “It’s very important to the revitalization, the vitality of downtown, to bring college-aged students down here. It will do a world of good for the downtown. We’re very excited.
“Springfield is on the way back and this is really a big step,” Kennedy said.
Nicholas Fyntrilakis, vice president of community responsibility for MassMutual, said UMass is bringing its “economic engine” to Springfield.
“We’re thrilled to see they are investing here in Springfield, and that they are going to have programs here in Springfield to help build the talent we need for our workforce and drive parts of the economy that they can provide assistance to,” Fyntrilakis said.
Henry Thomas III, of Springfield, chairman of the university’s Board of Trustees, said the satellite campus links “a great city and a great university,” culminating a longtime effort for UMass to have a “strong, vivid presence” in the downtown.
U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal joined in praising the university’s decision, saying having the satellite campus downtown "makes all the difference."