Springfield Post

By Ronald Hamm

The Nov. 12 Committee of The Whole meeting, chaired by Alderwoman Jennifer Notriano, was a smooth affair with no hiccups. 

The first issue on the agenda was “The State of The Shoes,” a presentation by the owners of the Springfield Horseshoes minor-league team who also lease Robin Roberts Stadium. They went over how they acquired the Horseshoes, their goals for the team and their brand, and what they’ve done for the community. 

An interesting detail is their dedication to anti-politics, expressed in the motto, “Baseball is our platform, not our purpose.” According to them, their purpose is bringing people together to enjoy an entertaining day at the stadium. 

They then detailed their disappointment with the Springfield Park District, going so far as to threaten to move out of Springfield.

“As an ownership group, we truly want to be here,” said Chris Rassmussen, a co-owner of the Horseshoes (and several other Prospect League teams) “However, in two years there is an inflection point. The lease is up at Roberts, and we’re going to need to make a business decision.”

Rassmussen said other communities, such as Quincy, have been trying to bring teams like the Horseshoes to their cities.

City Council expressed satisfaction with the management of the team and stadium, with Aldermen Roy Williams Jr. and Larry Rockford praising the team management. Alderman Shawn Gregory also praised the team management but expressed confusion at their difficulties with the park district. 

The next major item was several railways in Springfield and their fate. Back in 2011, it had been decided that it would be cost-effective to install a pair of overpasses on the east side. However, due to a decrease in traffic on those tracks, largely due to the power station in Kinkaid shutting down, those projects have been deemed no longer necessary. The tracks are instead going to be paved over and turned into trails. 

Nearly every alderperson expressed concern over the state of the tracks. Chuck Redpath noted that dealing with the railway is incredibly difficult; they tend not to listen to the city or the state. Lakeisha Purchase asked why these plans had to be presented piecemeal to different interested groups. Gregory wanted an answer for how they were going to manage the tracks generally.

No one was more upset than Williams. He expressed concern that the unused rails were going to be left to go wild, based on other abandoned rails being left to be filled with weed that have to be cut down by the city. He also insisted that there needed to be more communication with the public, going so far as to say previous aldermen had functionally sold a lie to the city.

Later in the meeting, Williams would express concern over the lack of sidewalks on South Grand and Dirksen, stating that children who go to school nearby have to walk on the road.

Alderwoman Jennifer Notriano was also critical of the project, questioning the speakers about the specifics of their funding. She finished her questioning by saying, “I just want to make sure we’re using city money responsibly.”

The next meeting of the Springfield City Council is scheduled for November 19th. 

You can watch the Committee of The Whole meeting here — https://youtu.be/wNzF8AHyWcc?si=IFWYVo06Q8cgeWgR. Be aware that the sound is not working for much of the video.