“Consensus Front Runner”
In an editorial on Tuesday, February 15, 2022, (“Golden city manager opportunity”), the Lowell Sun deemed State Representative Tom Golden “the consensus frontrunner” to be Lowell’s next city manager and urged the council to “make Tom Golden an offer he can’t refuse.”
At Tuesday’s council meeting, Rita Mercier said much the same thing without actually naming Golden. When Mayor Sokhary Chau’s motion that the council’s Auditor/Clerk Oversight and Personnel Subcommittee establish a procedure and timeline for search and appointment of a new city manager came up for discussion, Councilor Mercier spoke in opposition to having a formal process similar to that used when hiring City Manager’s Eileen Donoghue and Kevin Murphy.
Mercier said, “If everyone wants a particular person, we should call that person and ask them if they want the job.” Only if that person or any others who councilors “have in mind” decline to take the position should the city advertise for applicants. Mercier is consistent. She said much the same when Donoghue was hired four years ago.
Councilor Vesna Nuon agreed with Councilor Mercier as far as advertising was concerned. He did not see the need to advertise in the Boston Globe or other regional newspapers but thought it sufficient to place the job posting on the website of the Massachusetts Municipal Association and on the city’s own website.
Councilor Wayne Jenness questioned Mayor Chau’s motion, saying that selecting the city manager was perhaps the most important task a council would perform so he felt that determining the process used to make that selection should be a joint effort of the entire council and not just the members of the subcommittee. Councilor Robinson pushed back saying it should start with the subcommittee (Robinson is on the subcommittee along with Councilors Dan Rourke and Erik Gitschier who is chair). Councilor Drinkwater said it was OK with him if it started with the subcommittee but it should be the full council that determines the process to be used. Mayor Chau said that was the intent of his motion. With that, the council voted unanimously for the motion and the matter was referred to the Auditor and Clerk Oversight and Personnel Subcommittee.
That committee has scheduled a meeting for Tuesday, February 22, 2022, at 6 p.m. in the Council Chamber. (The evening’s regular city council meeting was cancelled because it is school vacation week).
Here’s the notice of the Subcommittee Meeting:
CITY COUNCIL AUDITOR/CLERK OVERSIGHT AND PERSONNEL SUB/COMMITTEE WILL MEET AT 6:00 PM ON TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 22, 2022 IN THE COUNCIL CHAMBER, 375 MERRIMACK ST. / ZOOM (HYBRID)
ROLL CALL
1. Members: C. Gitschier, C. Robinson, C. Rourke.
2. MEETING CALLED TO ORDER
2.I. Communication Remote / Zoom Participation:
Meetings Will Be Held In Council Chamber With Public Welcome And By Using Remote Participation As Follows: Members Of The Public May View The Meeting Via LTC.Org (On-Line; Live Streaming; Or Local Cable Channel 99). Those Wishing To Speak Regarding A Specific Agenda Item Shall Register To Speak In Advance Of The Meeting By Sending Email To City Clerk Indicating The Agenda Item And A Phone Number To Call So That You May Be Issued Zoom Link To The Meeting. Email Address Is MGEARY@LOWELLMA.GOV. If No Access To Email You May Contact City Clerk At 978-674-4161. All Request Must Be Done Before 4:00 PM On The Day Of Meeting. For Zoom - HTTPS://SUPPORT.ZOOM.US/HC/EN-US/ARTICLES/201362193-JOINING-A-MEETING
3. ORDER OF BUSINESS
3.I. Discussion - Report And Establish Procedure And Timeline For Search And Appointment Of A New City Manager. (M. Chau Motion Dated 2/15/22)
4. ADJOURNMENT
The Coming Spending Squeeze
This new city council likes to spend money. By my count, of the 115 motions filed since the start of this term, roughly 48 ask for or require some outlay of funds. It’s financially feasible to do many of these things now due to the windfall from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) and also the infusion of Free Cash the city is expected to have certified soon by the state.
But neither of those is a recurring revenue source and they will only be available for another year or two. After that, the money available for city expenditures will be reduced. But expenditures made in one year don’t necessarily disappear when the extra revenue stops. These expenditures become embedded in the budget and must be funded from other sources.
At the same time that municipal expenditures are rising, the real estate market is slowing. That’s important to note because property tax revenue accounts for the bulk of funds raised by the city itself (as opposed to aid received from the state).
It still amazes me that the real estate market took off just as the pandemic struck but it did, and that market high has continued for nearly two years. But the first signs of the market weakening hit last summer with a decline in the number of new mortgages compared to the same time a year earlier. When the 2003-07 boom came to an end, a decline in the number of mortgages was an early indicator of bad things to come. That’s happening again now. The number of mortgages initiated in Greater Lowell from July 2021 through January 2022 was down 22 percent from the same period a year earlier. With the Federal Reserve expected to raise interest rates in response to rising inflation, the mortgage market will only get worse.
The home purchase market remains strong due mostly to a lack of inventory but as interest rates rise, the amount of money that potential home buyers will be able to borrow will drop which will force home prices to decline. When home values go down, foreclosures go up. There are few foreclosures now partly because the economy is strong but also because in a rising market if a borrower is unable to pay their mortgage, they can sell their house and realize enough money to pay off the mortgage and make enough of a profit to start anew as a renter. But in a declining market, a delinquent borrower is unable to realize enough money from the sale to cover the debt. That often leads to a foreclosure.
The appreciation of real estate over the past two years has not seen any of the recklessness that accompanied the boom of the early 2000s but that doesn’t mean the warning signs of a slowing real estate market and all its potential consequences – especially for future property tax revenue - should be disregarded.
Lowell High School Project
At the February 8, 2022, council meeting, Councilor Erik Gitschier pressed the issue of the overall funding for the Lowell High project. The week before, representatives of the general contractor gave a presentation that portrayed an optimistic picture of the project thus far from both a construction and a budgetary perspective.
However, Gitschier’s persistence at the next meeting (when a formal report was received by the council) eventually made it evident that the contractor reps had been talking about the project costs thus far but that the future costs were dependent on responses to bids that have yet to be received. In answer to Gitschier’s questions, City Manager Donoghue painted a bleaker picture of future finances saying that in addition to global shortages of construction materials and delays in supply chains, subcontractors now putting together bid responses for the next phase of the project will be factoring in a worst-case scenario which will likely result in higher prices than were estimated before the pandemic struck.
Donoghue added that her administration has been lobbying the state to adjust the Massachusetts School Building Authority reimbursement rules to reflect the fiscal realities of the pandemic. Otherwise, any community that was in the process of constructing a school during the pandemic will have to absorb substantial cost increases from local budgets without any additional assistance from the state.
Whatever other individual and collective goals this council may have, they all seem appropriately focused on the High School project. This focus includes paying close attention to the work of the School Building Committee. According to the Lowell High School Project website, that committee is chaired by City Manager Donoghue and has the following individuals as members and member affiliations. (The website says the list was last updated in April 2021):
· Eileen Donoghue – City Manager
· John Leahy – Mayor
· Edward Kennedy – State Senator
· Rodney Elliott – City Councilor
· William Samaras – City Councilor
· Rady Mom – State Representative
· Connie Martin – School Committee Member
· Maryann Manzi – Director of Public Safety R & D for city of Lowell
· Michael Fiato – Lowell High School Head of School
· Christine Clancy – DPW Commissioner
· James Cook – Community Member
· Joel Boyd – School Superintendent
· Jay Mason – Community Member
· Erica Harvey – Lowell Commission on Disability Member
· Ben Opara – Community Member
· David Peaslee – Lieutenant, Lowell Police Dept.
· Maria Sheehy – Community Member
· Conor Baldwin – City of Lowell CFO
· Billie Jo Turner – School Business Administrator
· Richard Underwood – School Dept. Director of Maintenance & Facilities
· Mike Vaughn – Chief Procurement Officer, city of Lowell
· VACANT – Asst. City Manager & Dir. Of DPD
To refresh everyone’s recollection, the Lowell High School Project is divided into four phases:
Phase 1 – Construction of a new gymnasium on the 75 Arcand Drive site that was taken by eminent domain. This is nearly completed and the new gym is expected to be open by the start of the school year this September.
Phase 2 – There are roughly four sub-phases of this project. First is the demolition of the existing LHS field house. This space will ultimately become a grassy “quad” that will be integral to the school’s campus. Second is the construction of a new Freshman Academy Building that will run along Father Morrissette Boulevard from the intersection with Arcand Drive to the existing edge of the 1980 building. Third is the renovation of that exterior edge of the 1980 building and of the southern one-third of that building (the part closest to Merrimack Street. Fourth is the replacement of one of the elevated pedestrian bridge over the Merrimack Canal that connects the 1980 building to the 1922 building. This entire phase will commence in full this summer with the work entirely completed in April 2024.
Phase 3 – Renovation of the remainder of the 1980 building and of the northern half (near French Street) side of the 1922 building plus the replacement of the second pedestrian bridge. This phase is supposed to commence in April 2024 and be completed in August 2025.
Phase 4 – Renovation of the rest of the 1922 building. This is supposed to begin in June 2025 and be completed in July 2026.
The entire project is expected to be completed in time for the opening of school in August 2026.
Thanks Dick - I do have to wonder if the "pre-selection" of the past several City Managers has added in part (small or not) to the City's issues with hiring and retaining professional managerial staff at the Director and Deputy levels, let alone at the licensed professional level. If we're not putting out there that we're being serious, honest, and thoughtful about hiring and that experience, education, and skills matter - its no wonder experienced, educated, skilled folks aren't keen to apply.
Thank you for keeping us informed.