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on August 26, 2016 at 12:52 PM, updated August 29, 2016 at 9:21 AM

By Michael A. Serafino

In any city, jobs are a key element for economic prosperity. For me, the City of Homes has also been the city of jobs. With brief stop overs in Northampton, Worcester and Providence I've worked in downtown Springfield for over 40 years.

Understandably, safety is never far from people's minds. I still get asked – Is it OK to come downtown? Isn't it bad around there? My answers – I'm still standing. I'm used to it. It's fine. But I want that to change. I want people to stop asking those questions and start exploring the possibilities this city has to offer. I want to be able to say that Springfield is a bustling city made up of businesses small and large, that this is a place with opportunities for all people. And to me, that starts with jobs.

My work history represents a bit of a historic tour of some downtown locations. It illustrates the evolution of a city that is ever-changing.

My work history represents a bit of a historic tour of some downtown locations. It illustrates the evolution of a city that is ever-changing.

174 Chestnut Street. Market Square Café also known as Lynch Café. It's a parking lot now for 350 Grill but as a college student I poured drinks for thirsty bowlers that came in from next door. Shots and beers only, no fancy cocktails. Ham sandwiches. Yes, I had a knife pulled on me one night by an elderly gentleman but I chased him away with a shillelagh. He came in the next night as if nothing had happened. The bar was owned by my uncle, Timothy Patrick Francis Aloysius Lynch.

85 Chestnut Street. A low brick building at the top of Harrison Ave. I occupied one of many cubicles as a marketing representative for the New England Telephone Company, now Verizon. The building has been beautifully re-purposed as part of the Lyman and Merrie Wood Museum.

1676 -1708 Main Street. The Paramount Theater, also known at various times as the Julia Sanderson Theater and the Hippodrome. A wonderful space! I worked on the backstage crew for the Allman Brothers Band and Dr. John the Night Tripper right after Duane Allman died. The theater was purchased in 2011 by the New England Farm Workers' Council and is still awaiting a rebirth.

1860 Main Street. As a concert reviewer for the Springfield Daily News from 1975 – 1978, I prowled the newsroom mostly late at night or very early in the morning. The building is still home to the region's largest media outlet, the Springfield Republican.

1277 Main Street. The Mass. Mutual Center. The number of concerts held in the Springfield Civic Center was staggering in the 1970s – several each week. Many of the concerts I reviewed were there, from Kiss to Bowie to the O'Jays to Lawrence Welk. The building was completed in 1972 for $10.3 million and has been forever challenged to provide programming and events that appeal to a wide variety of entertainment seekers.

75 Dwight Street. Right behind the Mass. Mutual Center, this space is next door to the outside elevator that rises (or did at one time) to Chestnut Street. Not the best urban planning. It was the first office in my investment career. I got to wave to singer Kenny Rogers as he walked by before a concert. It's still office space but unoccupied.

1350 Main Street. The MassLive Building. Also, the Sovereign Bank Building and the Bank of Boston Building. But always, One Financial Plaza. Over the years the owners have a done a great job of integrating the building into the fabric of downtown while operating a top quality facility.

1414 Main Street. Monarch Place. The former site of the iconic Forbes and Wallace department store, this eye-catching structure has been a recognizable part of the city's skyline and is now best known as the nesting spot for peregrine falcons. It infamously housed Monarch Life Insurance (defunct in 1991) and Bank of New England (also defunct in 1991). But it's been a first class office building for years attracting many successful and long tenured businesses.

And finally, 1500 Main Street. Tower Square, Baystate West. The Mass. Mutual Building. I never quite understood the name change to Tower Square but it's where I currently hang my hat (for at least the third different time). It's hard to beat the beautiful views of the Connecticut River. And on a clear day, you can even catch a glimpse of Hartford some 24 miles distant.

What all these buildings have represented to me over the years is one thing: employment. And so I leave you with this challenge: help us make Springfield a vibrant place where people come to work and play. Let's create more jobs so that in forty years someone else can come along reflect fondly on this city just as I have.

Michael A. Serafino is an investment executive and an active nonprofit board member. Springfield Voices is a writer's collective dedicated to presenting an honest and balanced look at metro area life in the present and in the past.