This is the end of a rare stretch in Lowell’s annual political calendar in which we go three weeks between city council meetings. The agenda for this Tuesday’s council meeting contains 19 motions carried over from the August 23 meeting, 15 motion responses, 13 new motions, several commendations and three presentations so there will be plenty of new stuff to write about next week.
With no meeting to report on today, I’ll use this edition to discuss several infrastructure projects in Lowell. References to infrastructure took on a mocking tone during the last presidential administration with its recurring promises of “infrastructure week” that never came. That was unfortunate because infrastructure (1) is important and (2) benefits us all. Government at every level has some basic functions. Foremost might be keeping people safe but right behind that is infrastructure by which I mean roads, bridges, sidewalks, parks but also services like clean water and a functioning sewage system. In Lowell, those things usually work reliably and well, and we don’t give the city enough credit for delivering those services.
The city of Lowell website has a “Construction Projects” page that has a comprehensive list although it seems a bit outdated (several entries state “work will be completed in Spring 2022”). Still, there are far more projects than I can cover here so I will focus on those in the vicinity of the Hamilton Canal District.
The Lowell Justice Center opened in March 2020, during the earliest phases of the pandemic shutdown. All offices in the building have operated since then, but the public wasn’t allowed in for a while and then only with substantial limits. But there are no Covid-related restrictions on entry now. The building is fully operational and, from my perspective, functions quite well.
One thing I find strange about the Lowell Justice Center is there’s never been a ribbon cutting or formal dedication ceremony. Several years ago, there was a groundbreaking with shovels and hardhats, the governor, leaders of the judiciary, and many local elected officials, but it’s unusual to not have a second ceremony after the building opens. I assume if Governor Baker was running for reelection, or if Lieutenant Governor Polito was running for governor, we would have such a ceremony sometime in October, but that’s not the case this year.
The biggest complaint I hear from members of the public about the Justice Center is that “there’s no parking” which I always find odd since the Hamilton Canal Innovation District parking garage with its 900 spaces is an eight-minute walk from the Justice Center, and the Edward Early Garage on Middlesex Street with its 950 spaces is a five-minute walk.
The “but there’s no parking” element will feel better, I guess, when the parking garage now under construction by the Lupoli Companies at 330 Jackson Street (a half-acre rectangle between the Justice Center and Mill No. 5) opens. There will be eight floors of parking with at least 500 spaces.
The original Hamilton Canal District plan did not contemplate parking on this lot, but the city amended the zoning several years ago and transferred the parcel to the Lupoli Companies on the promise that Lupoli would construct at least one building on one of the two lots on the other side of Jackson Street from the Justice Center. Lupoli’s argument was that he needed adjacent parking under his control to make constructing a new building feasible.
If this is what it takes to get Lupoli to build something, then it must be considered a good deal since nothing else seems to be going on building-wise in the Hamilton Canal District. Hopefully, Lupoli has made some firm time commitments on the start of construction of one or both discussed buildings, otherwise he’ll just be diverting revenue from the city’s Parking Enterprise Fund to his own company when the new garage fills up everyday with people coming to the Justice Center. Without the Lupoli garage, they would all be parking in city-owned garages but that will no longer be the case once the new garage opens.
Unlike the moribund Hamilton Canal District, the Lord Overpass remake continues to show progress. Three weeks ago, contractors closed off Jackson Street leading onto Dutton (although you can still turn into Jackson from Dutton). It looks like the final stages of work on the Dutton Street bridge over the Pawtucket Canal is underway. Unfortunately, an August 9, 2022, memo from Department of Planning and Development says that the Jackson/Dutton Street phase of the project which was supposed to be done in November of this year will not be finished until “early in the 2023 construction season.” The memo did say that the “southern end” of the project, which is everything from Jackson Street to the Lowell Connector will be completed on schedule later this fall.
I’m anxious for the Jackson Street portion of this to be done because I think it will transform the traffic pattern of that entire area. Vehicles traveling in either direction on Dutton Street will be able to turn into Jackson Street or into Fletcher; vehicles coming on Fletcher Street will be able to turn either way on Dutton or go directly across onto Jackson Street, and traffic coming up Jackson Street from Central will be able to go directly across onto Fletcher. This last one should relieve much of the inbound traffic on Dutton Street but also on Central Street as cars heading for the various Merrimack River bridges find Fletcher Street to be a more direct route to the river than the current options.
This intersection, once completed, will also make it easier for pedestrians. I once called Dutton/Thorndike Street “Lowell’s Iron Curtain” when it came to pedestrians because it was so difficult to cross on foot. Near Fletcher Street, your only (legal) options to cross Dutton were to walk inbound to Broadway or outbound to the Lord Overpass. Both were substantial detours especially when you just wanted to get across Dutton. Now there will be a pedestrian crossing light across Dutton from Jackson to Fletcher.
This new pedestrian crossing will bring new business to the Dutton Street Dunkin Donuts but it also should bring greater focus on how to gain safe and legal access to Western Avenue. For most of its existence, Western Avenue connected School Street to Thorndike, but the city closed off the Thorndike side in the 1970s. Back then, the mill building that now houses the artist galleries of Western Ave Studios was a working fabric manufacturing facility. Trucks going to and from needed the street to maneuver into the building so heavy through traffic on Western Ave was an inconvenience to the plant’s owner. The city council assented to his request to close off Western Ave. That reason for closing the road has disappeared along with manufacturing, but now the very active railroad track that bisects Western Avenue is the main reason the road will not be reopened. Several years ago, there was a big push to find a solution. There was talk of a pedestrian overpass but that was unfeasible since it would involve elevators at each end.
More recently, the Lowell National Park floated a new possibility. The Park has received funding to start planning a Pawtucket Canal Trail. The Pawtucket Canal leaves the Merrimack River near the intersection of Walker and Pawtucket Streets then curves through the Acre, crossing Broadway and angling behind Western Avenue Studios to Dutton Street. From there, it goes under Dutton, through the “Industrial Canyon,” across Central Street, behind the Inn & Conference Center and into the Concord River.
The proposed trail as it would approach Dutton Street would be on the Middlesex Street side of the canal. The railroad bridge that crosses the canal between Western Avenue Studios and Dutton Street has a high abutment on the Middlesex Street side of the canal. The National Park’s thinking was that it would be feasible to build a short tunnel under this embankment which, with only a few feet of excavation, would provide ample clearance for pedestrians. Because the path would all be on the surface with only gradual inclines and declines, there would be no additional cost for accessibility features. This would get you to Dutton Street just a short distance from the Fletcher Street pedestrian crossing. You’d still be on the wrong side of the canal to get to Western Ave, but it would be relatively simple and affordable to place a pedestrian bridge over the canal to Western Ave at that point, just like the one recently installed over the Concord River at the Lowell Memorial Auditorium. This is many years off, but it does seem like the best way to tie Western Ave to the Hamilton Canal District so hopefully it’s not abandoned.
A word about the Lord Overpass. It was constructed in the early 1960s and was named for Louis J. Lord (1882-1950) who served several terms on the city council in the 1920s, was active in local Republican politics, and owned and operated a tobacco store on Middlesex Street near the Overpass. Lord was also referred to as “the mayor of Middlesex Street.” Louis’s son was Raymond J. Lord (1941-2004) who served as a state representative and as mayor of Lowell in 1961-62. (a swimming pool at the North Common was named for Raymond).
One casualty of the construction of the Lord Overpass was Joseph G. Belanger Square. Belanger was born in Lowell to Canadian immigrants. He served in the 26th Division in World War One and died on May 30, 1918, from wounds he received in combat in France. On July 4, 1922, the city dedicated the intersection of Middlesex and Thorndike Street in honor of Joseph Belanger. When the Lord Overpass was built, the intersection that had been dedicated to Belanger was no more and memory of the dedication faded. Perhaps when the Lord Overpass project is finished later this year, the city can restore the recognition of Private Belanger and rebrand the intersection of Middlesex and Thorndike “Joseph G. Belanger Square” while simultaneously designating the intersection of Appleton and Thorndike “Louis J. Lord Square” since it no longer seems appropriate to refer to that area as an “overpass.”
Returning to the Hamilton Canal District, the Niki Tsongas Bridge over the Pawtucket Canal in the midst of the Hamilton Canal District is working well although I suspect not many people have discovered it or its utility in getting around that area. When going to the Highlands from the vicinity of the Justice Center, Middlesex and Appleton Streets outbound are often backed up several light cycles. By following Canal Street over the Tsongas Bridge, you come to Broadway. A traffic light gets you easily across Dutton and then Broadway is a straight shot without significant backups to Wilder Street at the UMass Lowell South Campus. From there, it’s easy to get anywhere in the upper Highlands.
Regarding Central Street, I heard somewhere that the bridge over the Pawtucket Canal which has been under construction for what seems like several years will be completed by the end of this year. That will also help downtown traffic since Central Street outbound from Market has been closed since February 2021.
That’s a quick review of some of the projects underway in just one part of the city.
I agree with Joe that a better use for Lupoli’s lot would have been space for Law offices. I wonder if the city council is considering converting downtown Lowell into a used car dealship. This might even resolve their pedestrian problems there.
Concerning the closure of the Western Ave access to Thorndike, I say this to our city leadership: be careful what you wish for, you may get it. I see many attempts to close access and streets and paper streets, which is done for a short term benefit of an individual, e.g. homeowner or corporation (I am also thinking of closing a street by the Dutton Yarn factory to "help" the server farm there.
The stated reason was to benefit their security. From the city's security I got worse. If the Gorham and Moore intersection closes the detour is far off. A complete and robust network of streets actually benefits the movement of people and goods. It also relieves traffic from over stressed arteries.
That parcel 1 of the Hamilton Canal District would have been better used as an office (lawyers, mostly) building with ground floor retail (food service) with an active plaza adjoining the Trial Court. The location of the Trial Court was in great part due to its proximity to the Transportation Center, but the car-first attitude prevailed once again, and our “leaders” let it happen.