Wednesday, September 23, 2026 / Glenwood / Springfield
Glenwood's riverfront park gains room by losing a 5,000-square-foot building
Springfield's urban-renewal board chose demolition for the Brombaugh Building, while the City Council moved development negotiations to the same board.
The planned Glenwood riverfront park is getting 5,000 square feet more room, but the trade is a building with some local history. Springfield's urban-renewal board directed staff to remove the Brombaugh Building at 325 N. Brooklyn St., clearing more of a 1.5-acre city-owned property for park, open space and a riverfront trail.
Willamalane told the board it would not deliver the park, trail and open space if the building remained. Board members agreed to demolition and asked that signs or another feature remember the structure's past as the home of a pipe-organ manufacturer. A current tenant may receive a one-year lease extension, so the building is not coming down immediately.
The City Council also voted September 21 to let the Springfield Economic Development Agency handle development negotiations for the property. Staff estimate the first infrastructure phase across the larger 22-acre redevelopment area — a road, promenade and utilities connecting Franklin Boulevard to the river — at $9.97 million. That is an early estimate, not a final construction bill.
Field notes
What changed: Springfield's urban-renewal board chose demolition for the Brombaugh Building, and the City Council assigned development negotiations for the property to SEDA.
Why it matters: The decisions shape how much land becomes public riverfront space and move the long-planned 22-acre Glenwood redevelopment toward infrastructure work.
Who may be affected: Glenwood residents and businesses, Willamalane users, riverfront path users, the current building tenant, and future housing or commercial developers.