Longmeadow

Longmeadow is a town in Hampden County, Massachusetts, in the United States. The population was 15,853 at the 2020 census. Longmeadow was first settled in 1644, and officially incorporated October 17, 1783. In 1894, the more populous and industrialized "East Village" portion of the town containing the brownstone quarries split off to become East Longmeadows. The Town Green is a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places, and it is surrounded by a number of buildings dating back to the 18th and 19th centuries. Almost 20% of the houses in town are in proximity to a "dingle", a tree-lined steep-sided sandy ravine with a wetland at the bottom that provides a privacy barrier between yards. The town has a town common, commonly referred to as "The Green", located along U.S. Route 5 on the west side of town. It is about 0.5 miles (0.80 km) long and is about 3 miles (5 km) north to south and 4 miles (6.4 km) east to west. The area supports a wide range of wildlife including deer, beaver, wild turkeys, foxes, and eagles. The private Twin Hills and public Franconia golf courses, plus athletic fields and conservation land, cover nearly 2/3 of the eastern border. Two large public parks and three conservation areas account for the bulk of the remaining formal open space.

History

Longmeadow is the primary city name, but also Springfield are acceptable city names or spellings. The official name is Longmeadow, Massachusetts. Longmeadow was first settled in 1644, and officially incorporated October 17, 1783. The town was originally farmland within the limits of Springfield. It remained relatively pastoral until the street railway was built c.1910. In 1894, the more populous and industrialized "East Village" portion of the town containing the brownstone quarries split off to become East Longmeadow. Several famous American buildings, including Princeton University's Neo-Gothic library, are made of longmeadow brownstone. The Longmeadows Country Club was the proving ground for golf equipment designed and manufactured by the Spalding Co. of Chicopee. Bobby Jones made a number of his instructional films at LCC in the 1930s. In the 1960s, the population tripled over a fifteen-year period. After Interstate 91 was built in the wetlands on the west side of town, population tripled again between 1960 and 1975. During the 19th and early 20th centuries, LongMeadow was best known as the site from which Longmefield brownstone was mined. The LCC was designed by famed golf course architect Donald Ross in 1922. It was a member in standing of the New England Golf Association. It is located on the banks of the Merrimack River, which runs through the center of the city. It has a population of about 2,000 people, with about 1,000 of those living in the downtown area. The city is home to the U.S. College of Arts and Sciences.

Geography

Longmeadow is located in the western part of the state, just south of the city of Springfield. It is bordered on the west by the Connecticut River and Agawam, to the east by East Longmeadow, and to the south by Enfield, Connecticut. The town has a total area of 9.7 square miles (25.0 km²), of which 9.1 sq mi (23.6 km²) are land and 0.50 sq mi or 5.34 km² are water. Almost 20% of the houses in town are in proximity to a "dingle", a tree-lined steep-sided sandy ravine with a wetland at the bottom that provides a privacy barrier between yards. The area supports a wide range of wildlife including deer, beaver, wild turkeys, foxes, and eagles. The Town Green is a historic district on the National Register of Historic Places, and it is surrounded by a number of buildings dating back to the 18th and 19th centuries. It has three recently remodeled elementary schools, two secondary schools, and one high school. The commercial center of town is an area called "The Longmeadows Shops", including restaurants and clothing stores. The current function of the town green is park and single dwelling, and the current sub-function is domestic and landscape. LongMeadow is about 0.5 miles (0.80 km) long and has a town common, commonly referred to as "The Green".

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 15,633 people, 5,734 households, and 4,432 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,732.5 inhabitants per square mile (668.9/km²) The racial makeup of the town was 95.42% White, 0.69% African American, 0,05% Native American, 2.90% Asian, 0.,06% Pacific Islander, and 0.62% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.09% of the population. The median income for a household in the city was $109,586, and $115,578 for a family. About 1.0% of families and 2.1% of residents were below the poverty line, including 0.3% of those under age 18 and 8.3%) of those age 65 or over. For every 100 females, there are 87.7 males. For each 100 females age 18 or over, there is 82.0 males. The town has a population density of 651.5 people per square kilometre (251.5/ km²) with 5,879 housing units for every 100 people. The average household size was 2.66 and the average family size was 3.09. The city has a median age of 43 years, with 26.8% under the age of 18, 4.6% from 18 to 24, 22.0 percent from 25 to 44, 28.7% from 45 to 64, and 17.8 percent who were 65 or older.

Government

The town is chartered as an Open Town Meeting form of government. The town government also consists of a Select Board with five members. The public school system is governed by the School Committee. The School Committee is made up of seven voting members elected by the town. The superintendent of schools, two assistant-superintendents, a secretary, and a student representative are also on the committee. The school system has a budget of more than $1 million a year. It is the largest school system in the state, with more than 1,000 students. It also has the largest number of teachers in the U.S., with over 2,000. It has one of the largest student populations in the country. The district has a student population of over 1,500, with the majority of students being under the age of 16. The student population is the highest in the district, followed by the school system's adult population. The total number of students is more than 2,300, with about 1,200 of them under the 16th grade. The high school has more than 100 students, and the junior high has about 100 students. The senior high has a population of about 200, with most of the students being sophomores or juniors. The elementary school has about 80 students, with many of them being freshmen. The middle school has around 100 students and the high school had about 200 students, many of whom are sophomoric or junior high students. There are no students living in the town, but the town does have a few low-income families.

Education

Longmeadow is home to the Bay Path University, a private undergraduate and graduate institution founded in 1897. Longmeadow also hosts two private parochial schools, the Lubavitcher Yeshiva Academy (LYA) and St. Mary's Academy. The town's elementary schools have been recently rebuilt, statements of interest for improvements to the two middle schools were filed with the Massachusetts School Building Authority in 2007. The music program's crowning achievement has been receiving three national Grammy Awards based on the high level of excellence maintained throughout all groups in the music program. The wind ensemble and symphony orchestra have had the honor of performing in Indianapolis, Boston (Boston Symphony Hall), and New York (Carnegie Hall). The jazz ensemble has won numerous gold medals as well, but no longer competes. The school had its grand opening in September 2013 with both the brand new school and renovated business & administration wing open to students and faculty. The new High School was completed and opened to students on February 26, 2013, after the demolition of the old school was begun. In 1999, LYA became the first Jewish day school to be accredited by the New England Association of Schools and Colleges (NEASC). The more than 90 students that the school serves each year from across the spectrum of Jewish life include orthodox, conservative, reform, and unaffiliated families. The honors chorus "Lyrics" has won several awards and has traveled to many places around the world on tours, such as Italy and Sweden. In 2010, Longmeadows was awarded The American Prize in Orchestral Performance.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Longmeadow, Hampden County, Massachusetts = 17. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 68. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 51. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Longmeadow = 3.4 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 1,662 individuals with a median age of 45 age the population dropped by -2.65% in Longmeadow, Hampden County, Massachusetts population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 1,739.8 residents per square mile of area (671.74/km²). There are average 2.64 people per household in the 5,620 households with an average household income of $85,121 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is 5.70% of the available work force and has dropped -4.68% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 24.94%. The number of physicians in Longmeadow per 100,000 population = 221.5.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Longmeadow = 44.6 inches and the annual snowfall = 43.2 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 109. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 190. 85 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 18.5 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 51, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Longmeadow, Hampden County, Massachusetts which are owned by the occupant = 88.12%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 48 years with median home cost = $320,560 and home appreciation of 6.06%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $15.64 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $6,491 per student. There are 13.3 students for each teacher in the school, 895 students for each Librarian and 429 students for each Counselor. 7.39% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 30.39% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 30.15% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).