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The City of Chicopee
Massachusetts is located near the junction of the Massachusetts Turnpike
and Interstate 91 and is a diverse urban community which serves as the
home of Westover Air Force Base. The city has mined its industrial past
for present uses, having transformed a number of 19th century industrial
buildings and locations into mixed modern uses.
An example of this is the sprawling
complex of 19th century brick buildings known as Cabotville Industrial
Park, which has housed a variety of small and medium-sized industries for
the past 50 years. The city is particularly well served for transportation,
boasting two airports, the Boston and Main Railroad and regular long distance
as well as local bus service. This supports a strong industrial base which
manufactures sporting goods, textiles, beverages, paper, office supplies
and the eastern edition of the Wall Street Journal.
Westover Air Force Base is a key
part of the local economy, employing about 1,000 local residents and housing
2,500 reservists of the 439th Military Airlift Wing. The base was the staging
area for American troops during the Persian Gulf war. Recycled former military
housing from the base serves as the nucleus of a planned development that
will include both market rate and affordable housing. An historic district
in Chicopee Center encompasses stately homes from the city's past and an
historic shad run on the Connecticut and Chicopee Rivers
Chicopee Massachusetts is located
in Southwestern Massachusetts, bordered by West Springfield and Holyoke
on the west, South Hadley and Granby on the north, Ludlow on the east,
and Springfield on the south. Chicopee is 92 miles southwest of Boston. |