Springfield at-large council candidates back park, enforcement fixes at neighborhood forum

SPRINGFIELD -- October 24, 2025, Springfield at-large City Council candidates clashed with neighborhood leaders over code enforcement, absentee landlords, and in-person attendance rules at an October 24 forum. Six candidates, Jose Delgado, Tracy Whitfield, Nicole Coakley, Juan Latore, Caterie Walsh, and Sean Curran, along with incumbent Justin Hurst faced questions from presidents of the Metro Center Association, McKnight Neighborhood Council, South End Citizens Council, and Maple High Six Corners Neighborhood Council, with five of the seven seats on the November 4 ballot. South End Citizens Council President Leo Florian pressed candidates on how many special permits the city has revoked in the last decade, describing permit conditions as "like a joke" with no follow-up enforcement. Whitfield said she is actively drafting a non-owner-occupied property registry ordinance with the Public Health Institute of Western Massachusetts and the city law department. Latore declared he would attend council meetings "in person 100% of the time" and said he had submitted a press release on councilor Zoom misuse that same day. The Metro Center Association's request for a new active recreational park in the downtown neighborhood, which has roughly 6,000 residents and no playground or basketball facility, drew unanimous candidate support.