SPRINGFIELD – By the end of the meeting of the Maple High Six Corners Neighborhood Council meeting on Feb. 9 two members of the audience were shouting at each other, while Council President and Ward Three City Councilor Melvin Edwards tried to restore order.

The exchange was evidence of the controversy caused by the announcement that Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance has announced the Western Massachusetts Addiction and Recover Program would be placed in a long-abandoned former nursing home on Mill Street.

The meeting was also a preview of coming attractions, as on Feb. 11 Sheriff Michael Ashe, Jr. was to have a formal meeting to show the plans and explain how the neighborhood would benefit from the center’s presence.

The subject of the treatment center was the second on the agenda, the first topic being part of a “listening tour” undertaken by members of the City Council and Police Department to see if the public is happy with the current moratorium on pawnshops in the city.

City Councilor Thomas Ashe, who chaired the hearing, said there are nine pawnshop and 33 second hand stores in the city.  

“With MGM coming in I think it’s still a fair number,” Ashe said.

There has been interest as the casino project progresses by people opening additional pawnshops, Ashe noted. He called the casino a “driving force.”

Police Commissioner John Barbieri said, “We want to hear what you have to say.”

He continued by explaining the current 30-day holding period for pawned items has allowed police enough time to track down stolen items.     

The residents gathered asked a few questions about the nature of the pawn business, but none expressed reservations about continuing the moratorium to maintain the current number of pawnshops.

The room of people ignited, though, about the subject of the Western Massachusetts Correctional Addiction Center relocating to the Mill Street building.

Residents said the facility does not fit into the vision plan for the neighborhood developed after the June 1, 2011 tornado. They questioned whether or not the site is in a historic district.

One person directly asked if the relocation was “a done deal.” City Council President Michael Fenton said that while there is a role for the city and the residents to play there is no “formal legal role” for either. He said the state is exempt from municipal zoning issues. It does not need a special permit for the center, either.

One person questioned why the City Council unanimously voted its support for the center remaining in Springfield. It was evicted as part of the MGM casino project and is now in temporary quarters in Holyoke.

Fenton said the property taxes generated by the facility are advantages to it staying in Springfield – it would be in a privately owned building – as well as the services provided by the participants to the neighborhood.

One person said that putting “a jail in the middle of a neighborhood of color psychologically damages children.”

Members of the sheriff’s staff offered answers about the facility. Della Blake, who is facility’s director, explained how there is a major education element to the treatment, as well as community restitution in which participants work in the neighborhood. “Accountability” is a cornerstone of the program, she added.

She said the neighborhood in Holyoke had similar concerns prior to the family moving into the former Geriatric Center.

People argued the facility could be anywhere in Western Massachusetts, but instead charged, “You want to keep it in a community of color.”

Demetrios Panteleakis, who owns the Mill Street Office Park with Walter Kroll, and who is renovating three homes on Mill Street, said the facility would offer stability to the neighborhood and have a positive impact on property values.

Another man, who identified himself as a realtor, vigorously disagreed.