Mayors update businesses at the annual WRC Mayoral Breakfast

Sept. 10, 2020 | Sarah Heinonen
sarah@thereminder.com

West Springfield Mayor Will Reichelt and Agawam Mayor Bill Sapelli talk at a past West of the River Chamber of Commerce Mayoral Breakfast.
Photo credit: West of the River Chamber of Commerce

WEST SPRINGFIELD/AGAWAM – The West of the River Chamber of Commerce (WRC)’s Mayoral Breakfast was conducted virtually this year amid the COVID-19 pandemic. West Springfield Mayor Will Reichelt and Agawam Mayor Bill Sapelli updated members of the business community on projects the towns are engaged in as well as the status of the pandemic and how it will affect future budgets.

Reichelt reported that there had been 430 cases of COVID19 in West Springfield, but from month to month he said the numbers were trending downward.

The West Side mayor talked about the plan for reopening schools. While most students are beginning remotely, high needs students will be back on campus four days per week beginning in mid-September. In October, the district will decide whether to return all the students to a hybrid in-person model or continue remotely.

Reichelt said the state had committed to level funding for local aid and Chapter 70 through this year, but that the next fiscal year will be a “disaster.” The mayor and superintendent are considering permanently laying off school staff who have been on furlough.

Continuing on the topic of the economy, he said, “I do have concerns about the survivability of restaurants relying on outdoor dining,” as fall approaches. He said that in a recent conversation with Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito, she told him the state was focused on reopening schools and will shift their attention to business after that.

Reichelt explained that the Bear Hole conservation restriction had passed, “but the work for that is not done yet.” Mass Audubon must still raise $350,000 for their portion of the $1 million price tag to hold the conservation restriction as a partner with the state Department of Conservation and Recreation. He said there were donation opportunities in which businesses on the call may have an interest.

Reichelt praised the median construction in front of Granger School in Agawam and joked that he “might steal” the idea for use in West Springfield.

Sapelli spoke at length about the boom in business construction taking place in Agawam. The city is seeing an increase in renewable energy businesses, along with a soon-to-be-completed food-waste conversion facility from Vanguard Renewables that will process expired packaged food to be turned into electric power. There is also retail and office construction being done at the Villas at Pine Crossing.

The town has received a $177,396 grant from the state Department of Energy Resources which is being used to transition to LED lighting at Agawam High School and Agawam Junior High School and replace parts of the heating, ventilation and air conditioning system to energy-efficient options. Sapelli said this work made the town eligible for $146,000 from “energy companies for going green.”

The Morgan-Sullivan Bridge project is going “extremely well” and Sapelli said they’re making “tremendous progress” on “rebuilding the bridge from the bedrock up.”

The $21.5 million MassDOT project was originally slated for completion in May 2022, but has been moved up to August 2021. Sapelli said that not only was he confident that the project would make that deadline, he believed the public would have full use of the bridge as early as June of next year.

Additional construction projects in the town include two new roofs, one at the high school and another at Phelps Elementary School.
As with West Springfield, the reopening of schools is Agawam’s biggest focus at the moment. Students will be returning to school with a hybrid model. Sapelli said that the town is being “very cautious” and that a full return to in–person learning was “impossible” within the rules laid out by the state. He expressed appreciation that “everyone has stepped up” and was being “cooperative” in putting the reopening plan into action.

Sapelli noted that the town is in good shape financially, but it may be a year or two before the effects of the pandemic are seen on the budget.

Of the 556 cases Agawam has seen since March, Sapelli said over 300 of them were in the town’s eight elderly care facilities. Currently, the town only has four active cases in the general population. Addressing the COVID-19 levels ahead of the Labor Day holiday, Sapelli urged residents to continue to wear masks, social-distance and practice hand-washing.

“We don’t want to go backward. People say, ‘Maybe it’s going away.’ Well, gee, maybe that’s because people are doing the right thing,” Sapelli said.

WRC Executive Director Robin Wozniak then opened the floor to questions. Chairman of the WRC Scott Haselkorn began by asking the mayors about aid for the upcoming home heating season in light of the economic downturn and the number of area residents out of work.

Reichelt told him that the state’s Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), also known as fuel assistance, was expected to expand this year. Sapelli added that appointments could be made with the Senior Center to help residents fill out the LIHEAP applications.

Wozniak asked about the extension of restaurant outdoor dining permits into the cold weather months.

Reichelt told her the use of outdoor dining to accommodate diners during the restaurant closure has been a “great experiment” that is “effective and it works.” While West Springfield has no marked end date for the permits, he said the use of outdoor seating will come to an end on its own due to the colder weather.

In Agawam, Sapelli said the outdoor dining has been “a real boom for the restaurants” and helped them to survive. The problem he foresees is that the outdoor setups generally take up parking spaces. As indoor dining becomes more safe and popular, Sapelli said the parking spaces will be needed by restaurants. Agawam currently has an expiration date of Nov. 1 on the outdoor dining permits, but said the town will be flexible as the situation evolves.

Ken Ritucci of Republic Services asked Reichelt about road work on Piper Road. The mayor told him that Piper Road is scheduled for repaving in the spring. The town will also bond for work on Coburn Road in 2021, he said.

David Chase asked about access to town services while the town halls are closed to the public. Both mayors said that appointments can be made for services and the town departments are available by phone.

When Chase asked about contact with Boston, Sapelli assured him that mayors have regular weekly phone calls with the Baker/Polito Administration. “They’re very open to us, take our calls.”

Dan Higgins asked the mayors if the towns will continue to use teleconferencing for meetings, even after the pandemic ends.

“It’s here to stay,” said Reichelt. He noted more people have attended meetings due to the convenience of not having to leave home. “Anything that expands participation.” Sapelli agreed, and said it is sometimes difficult to gather all needed personnel and that with Zoom, people can step into a quiet room or their vehicle for a meeting.

With Agawam as the site of Six Flags New England and West Springfield as the home of Eastern States Exposition, Russ Fontaine wanted to know what the long-term impact would be on these large businesses that draw in significant revenue for the towns.

Sapelli expressed disappointment that teenagers who lost out on a summer of experiences and entertainment have also lost their summer jobs at Six Flags.

“The longer they’re closed the more likely they’ll need a bailout,” Reichelt acknowledged of both institutions. “It is very frustrating when these places are just trying to stay in business. There will probably be closures, even big businesses.”

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