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Business owners, residents raise alarm about downtown decline and Wyndham closure
Summary
Speakers at public comment reported recent downtown business closures, declining foot traffic and uncertainty about the Wyndham hotel's status; speakers asked council and downtown organizations for clearer recovery plans and communication.
Business owners and residents told the Springfield City Council Committee July 8 they are seeing an accelerating decline in downtown activity, recent permanent closures and uncertainty tied to the Wyndham hotel's extended outage.
A downtown business representative said several restaurants closed in recent weeks, cited low foot traffic and criticized a lack of follow-through on recovery programs after a prior incident on Adam Street. "It's getting really bad," the speaker said, describing empty storefronts and a downtown map that the speaker said is out of date on official sites.
The speaker asked for clearer communication about the Wyndham hotel, which has been without power and water and remains closed. The absence of hotel capacity, the speaker said, reduces tourism dollars for downtown restaurants and shops. "How much tourism have we lost from the Wyndham being closed? We don't have the capacity to fill all that," the speaker said.
Council members acknowledged the concerns and said downtown recovery matters; no staff report or formal action on downtown support was recorded in the transcript during the meeting. The public commenter said he will open a radio station downtown and urged more effective stewardship of the district.
Council staff and downtown organizations were not recorded responding with a plan during the meeting; the transcript indicates the topic will arise in future meetings.
