Springside Natural Park Center

Summary of Reuse & Redevelopment Planning

for Pittsfield's Springside House
Overview

Springside House, originally known as “Elmhurst,” has long been an important building to the
residents of Pittsfield and since its vacancy, there has been a strong and prevailing interest in
redeveloping this building to serve some important purpose for the benefit of the community.

The existing structural attributes of the building as it has been developed, and its historic usages
have long suggested the viability of the house as a multi‐faceted hub that can accommodate several
integrated agencies and uses, particularly uses tied to its unique site location within the city's
largest park. It has been determined through a careful, multi-year process of feasibility assessment,
public input and master planning that a properly renovated Springside Park Center can
accommodate all of the following features/usages, in a collaborative configuration that would
amplify the effectiveness of its components:

• An ideal new location for existing local Visitors Center auspices to be based at a destination park

• Classroom and meeting spaces for local educational and community programs, especially as a
complement to outdoor environmental learning and/or cultural activities conducted in the park

• Office or workspace areas providing a presence for local organizations, including those already
conducting programs at Springside, whose presence would enhance visitor experience and
community benefit, as a centralized resource hub of environmental and agricultural education
available to students of all levels.

• Room and wall space featuring artifacts & memorabilia from Pittsfield history, particularly the
substantial collection of outdoor recreation and parks history preserved from the house's own
legacy.

• Social gathering space complementary to outdoor recreational, cultural and community events
History of the Building

Abraham Burbank built the Springside House, originally as a private residence, sometime between
1856 and 1860. Designed primarily in the Italianate style, the Springside House, which was unusually
complex in form and massing, sits on the hill above what today is known as North Street in Pittsfield.
Abraham was born in West Springfield, MA, and relocated to Pittsfield to begin his career as a
journeyman carpenter in 1832. In 1834 he married Miss Julia Brown of Pittsfield. As an entrepreneur
he experienced success not only as a carpenter, but a hotelier, farmer, merchant and landlord of several
business blocks and scores of tenements.

Between 1840 and 1850, Burbank purchased a large farm at the north side of Pittsfield from Thomas B.
Strong, and established his gentleman’s farm of about 80 acres on the property. In 1856, Burbank sold
the original farmhouse (which by 1872 was known as Springside House) and 30 acres of land to the
Reverend Charles E. Abbott, to serve as a private boarding school. The school operated from 1856-
1866.

In 1872, Burbank sold the Elmhurst house and 50 acres of farmland for $16,500 to John Davol, a
wealthy brass manufacturer from Brooklyn, N.Y.. He owned Elmhurst from 1872 until his death in
1878 at the age of 68. Upon Davol’s death, his two surviving sons, Frank and William H, inherited the
Elmhurst house. Both sons and their families summered at the house until 1887, after which William
and his wife (Jennie) along with their 5 children became the primary occupants.

Tragedy struck for Burbank in 1887 when he succumbed to “cerebral apoplexy” known today as stroke.
Dedicated to improving and expanding opportunity in Pittsfield, he left the bulk of his estate to the city,
to support public education, a free hospital and public parks. Unfortunately, town leaders balked at the
anticipated level of civic responsibility and negotiated smaller gifts to several community institutions
instead.

In 1904 William Davol passed away, the house and contents were offered at public auction. Clarence
Stevens, a mining engineer and family friend, attended the auction with the intent of boosting the
bidding, but instead - and unintentionally- found himself the new owner for the purchase price of
$12,500. At that time the house was configured as it is today and the property consisted of 53 acres.
Stevens and his wife Hannah occupied the home as a summer residence from the time of his
unsuspecting auction purchase until both their deaths in 1932 or 1933. During this time Steven’s had
purchased an additional 21.75 acres of adjoining land, increasing the property to nearly 75 acres. Upon
Hannah’s death, their son the Reverend John Underwood Stevens, a Presbyterian minister in New York
City, inherited the parcel and home.

In 1910, Kelton B. Miller, a former Pittsfield mayor and the editor of the Berkshire Evening Eagle, and
his wife Eva, donated 10 acres of land in the vicinity of Elmhurst for use as a public park, which then
became Abbott Park. By 1919, with the donation of additional land and the sale of some existing lots,
the park had increased in size to 15.5 acres and was renamed Springside Park.

In 1938, Kelton Millers sons Donald B. and Lawrence K. purchased the 75 acre Stevens estate and
donated the house and land for the enlargement of Springside Park, in honor and memory of their
father.
Subsequently, the Park Commission authorized caretaker Harry J. Watson to renovate what was now
known as Springside House for use by clubs and community organizations and in 1941 it was opened
for public use. Four of the first floor rooms were renovated for meetings, parties and other adult
activities on a seasonal basis.

Between 1941 and 1955 gifts and purchases of additional acreage added to the size of the Park. In 1954
the city bought 38 acres from Hillcrest Hospital at the price of $16,000. In 1955 the park grew even
more with the purchase of the Reed-Fallon-Hurley-Horrigan 58-acre tract for playground purposes at
the price of $6,500. In that same year D.B. Miller also gave a 5-acre lot to the City of Pittsfield. As the
park grew, so did the administrative needs. In 1954, Springside House was “remodeled” “in the modern
style” and became the office and headquarters of the Pittsfield Dept. of Parks and Recreation.

In 1964 the City of Pittsfield bought a 30-acre tract on Benedict Road from Eagle Street Realty Trust
for $19,553, which was the difference between the $25,000 and the land damage settlement of $5,447.

In 2007, the Department of Community Services/Parks and Recreation was officially removed from the
city code. In July of that year James McGrath, the Director of Community Services, was relocated to
City Hall and given his current title of Park, Open Space, and Natural Resource Program Manager.
Park maintenance administration, now Buildings and Grounds Maintenance, was moved to the
Building Maintenance Department. Park recreation was moved to the Community Development
Department. Mr. McGrath was subsequently moved to community development, where he currently
oversees long-range planning functions and capital construction in the parks.

The principal Springside building has been generally unused since July, 2007, except for storage,
and the rear portion of the building used for housing AmeriCorp Vista interns until 2011.

Relationship to Springside Park

In addition to being an active venue for athletic, recreational and social events, Springside Park has
also become a hub of ecological education and outdoor learning activity, particularly in the acreage
immediately surrounding the Springside House.

Since at least the time of the Stevens estate, the area near the house has boasted celebrated gardens
of different kinds. A 1957 park plan by the city called for the establishment of an arboretum at
Springside, a task that was finally begun by the nonprofit Vincent J. Arboretum in the 1990s, and
has expanded to include a host of educational programming throughout all of Springside Park. In
1969, gardening club known as the Springside Greenhouse Group began operating out of an
adjacent greenhouse. This facility has grown significantly and the group remains active there today
with over 100 active members. Over the 1970s and 80s, another nonprofit organization, the Friends
of Springside Park, emerged and became incorporated, for the purpose of helping to preserve and
maintain the park while providing land stewardship education for future generations. More
recently, the Western Massachusetts Master Gardeners Association, a nonprofit which evolved out
of a UMASS program in 1989, has installed additional demonstration gardens near the house, and
provides workshop there throughout three seasons.

In addition to these four organizations actively involved in offering a diversity of ecological and
agricultural educational programming, numerous other organizations and educational institutions
have utilized Springside Park for educational programming.

Past Study Recommendations

Several studies by outside consulting parties engaged to support Springside Park planning over the
years have included some specific recommendations for usage of the Springside House

• A 1998 report for the produced by Brian Gibbons on funding from the Department of
Environmental Management, the Northeast Center for Urban and Community Forestry, and
Pittsfield Beautiful Inc, notes the building's “Springside House is currently the head quarters
for the Pittsfield Department of Parks and Recreation. The House is essentially the center of
the arboretum area and would make an ideal visitors center offering tourist information for
the City of Pittsfield. The public could enjoy the wonderfully developed grounds while
learning what more there is to do around Pittsfield and the rest of the Berkshire.”

• A 2000 study by the Conway School of Design also proposes a role of the Springside House
as a welcoming gateway to the park where a visitors center for the surrounding park would
coexist with the existing Parks Department operations then quartered there. “Once people
enter the Springside House, they are greeted by volunteers who give out arboretum maps,
direct them to classes and workshops, or tell them a little history of Springside House and
the grounds. The information desk may also have books for sale and items pertaining to the
education a... the south door leads people to a path which connects to the concert and social
area.”

• A 2010 concept paper developed by city staff in conjunction with Ward 1 Councilor
Christine Yon , envisioned the building as an educational partnership to complement the
park's growing role as a hub of ecological learning. "The City of Pittsfield proposes to
renovate the Springside House and utilize its 237 acre Park and arboretum to provide a
variety of environmental education and professional development workshop.... In addition,
the City proposes to partner with Berkshire Community College and/or Massachusetts
College of Liberal Arts, and other community‐based agencies to offer environmental
stewardship opportunities for students throughout Berkshire County.

Input from Park Organizations

At meetings throughout 2012‐2013, the board of directors of the Vincent J. Arboretum repeatedly
indicated a desire for the reuse of the house as some type of educational center or tourist
destination, and a ideally a reuse that is relevant to the Arboretum, which immediately surrounds
the house. An opportunity for offices for Springside organizations, educational technology
and classroom spaces in such close proximity to the diverse lands of the park is seen as highly
desirable.

Separately, at its 2013 Annual Meeting, the Friends of Springside Park endorsed a motion to
advocate for a reuse of the house for “educational, cultural or historical purposes consistent with its
location in the park.”

This was further established by a vote on March 15, 2014 to endorse the Springside Park
Conservancy's recommended guidelines for reuse. These general guidelines were also endorsed by
unanimous vote of the Springside Greenhouse Group and Morningside Neighborhood Initiative,
respectively.

Guidelines for Reuse

• Proposed reuse should acknowledge the building's historical character and unique
location within Pittsfield's largest destination natural park

• Proposed reuse should be compatible with existing patterns of activity at the park-
established park programming, uses, partnerships- and consistent with the vision
and concepts to be established in the forthcoming Springside Park Master Plan.

• Proposed reuse should have a purpose that provides some unique benefit that
would not be better served or more appropriate at a more traditional residential or
commercial site.

• Proposed reuse plan should consider the versatility of the existing structure, and
where possible provide for mixed use, multi-use, or some range of compatible
usages for providing maximum community benefit and long term sustainability of
the reuse.

Public Input- Pittsfield Residents

As part of the Conditions Assessment and Feasibility Study conducted by CME Architects with
support of the Massachusetts Historical Commission, an extensive public input process was
conducted through the Department of Community Development, including surveys, two well
attended public meetings, and a significant volume of written correspondence submitted.
Out of a broad and varied range of possible conceptual uses, 96% of community input supported 3
top priorities for the use of the building, compatible in a mixed use facility:

• Park Visitor/Educational Center (esp. themed around environmental/

agricultural/ outdoor recreational programming

• Meeting & Office Spaces [Relevant Organizations]

• Related Museum/Exhibit Space

*Conditions Assessment and Feasibility Study, Springside House, CME Architects, 2014

It was mentioned by many residents with memories of the facility that the configuration of the
building has in the past accommodated multiple uses, and a traditional visitors center could easily
occupy a portion of the building while leaving ample rooms and spaces for other activities, which
could be enhanced by the day to day presence of visitors center facilities and in turn provide
additional interest and draw for visitors.

"The beauty of the variety of spaces within the building allows for multiple uses that very well
suits the expressed needs of the community as outlined in the public meetings," concluded the
CME feasibility study. "Most of the programs identified could be housed compatibly and naturally
within the house without altering the character defining features and historic aspect of the
assemblage."

Planning the Springside Natural Park Center

Following the conclusion of the feasibility study, which provided assessment of the building,
measured public support, and helped identify best possibles usages of the structure, the momentum
for the restoration and reuse of Springside House has moved forward with significant momentum
and support.

A total of $500,000 was allocated in the FY16 capital budget for initial restoration to begin
restoration of the building, a portion of which has been used in conjunction with additional
funding from the Massachusetts Historical Commission to undertake crucial stabilization work to
the foundation and roof throughout 2017, as well as beginning some initial restoration of the
exterior envelope.

Concurrent with the building's restoration, the DCD has been actively working with a number of
community stakeholder organizations to more tightly identify the potential partnerships and
spatial uses for the emerging concept of a multi-use center integrated with the surrounding natural
park. Working in tandem with the Springside Park Conservancy- a nonprofit consortium that
includes representatives from seven organizations actively involved in programming and/or
stewardship of the park- the City has held meetings with an additional ten organizations with
potential interest in using the center, in a mix of occasional programs, classes and meetings with
prospective ongoing day to day tenants.

This concept has been widely embraced by an array of organizations as extremely viable to their
needs and programs, particularly since so many already use the surrounding park for programs,
albeit currently without the benefit of any indoor space. As a city owned building, both office and
intermittent program space can be offered at a fee scale that is competitively affordable and yet
insures the ongoing financial sustainability of the facility itself.

The process of establishing the precise layout for the restored facility is part of ongoing planning
discussions with all of the facility's potential future partners, but a preliminary space use plan based
on the Conditions Assessment and Feasibility Study provides a general overview of how the
existing room configuration can serve to provide a dynamic center for these partners.
1st Floor

General usage configuration:

101- Visitors Center Welcome Area
102 -Classroom/Meeting Space
103- Springside Center room- variable use support area for overall facility
105 Office
108 Office
111 Office
112 Common area
2nd Floor

205 Office/ Conf. Room

208 Office
209 Office
213 Office
215 Office
221 Office
224 Office
3rd Floor

The 3rd floor has limited potential for reuse, but offers some utility for the purpose of basic storage
space supporting tenants and activity on Floors 1& 2, and could include up to 9 dedicated separate
storage rooms.