Light Up Lowell’s Canals

December 5, 2014 by PaulM Posted in History, Lowell 6 Comments

One of my colleagues at UMass Lowell, Bryce Hoffman, the executive director of marketing, is still somewhat new to the city. With his fresh perspective, he suggests that we need to do more with our unique canal system, which is a big part of what makes Lowell a distinctive place. He’s talking about lighting the canals in some way. Susan Halter, the City of Lowell’s cultural affairs director, is looking into ways that this can be done. Nancy Donahue for years has been urging that we light the bridges to show off these structures and emphasize that we are a waterfront community. I like these ideas. When it comes to marketing the city, something that we hear or read repeatedly is that it is important to emphasize what makes a place special in order to distinguish it as a destination for living, working, learning, and enjoying ourselves. We want people to choose Lowell.  I searched “illuminated canals” on the web, and this is what I found:

Canal_system_in_Lowell,_Massachusetts

 

6 Responses to Light Up Lowell’s Canals

  1. Kosta says:

    The photos on the web search at the bottom of the article was certainly illuminating, It shows clearly the beauty of lights along canals, It’s strikingly odd that there are hardly any houses along our Lowell canals – all that water front and nobody wants to live there, Let’s start with Dutton St canal entrance to Lowell amd one bridge.

  3. Tom says:

    I have also long thought about lighting the bridges, like New York City does. What a great idea! The canals are underutilized as a feature of the city. We celebrate them for their history and functionality, but to light them as an attraction, is also a tremendous idea and uses them in a whole new way.

  4. Brian says:

    Kosta,
    Housing along the canal on Dutton St would be nice but would only work if Dutton St is reverted back to its productive self – pre connector. People don’t like to live adjacent to quasi highways. It’s value as a wealth creator for the city has been suppressed by its 1960’s redesign, prompting cars to go 45+ mph, killing both businesses and pedestrians.

    I’m sure the Sampson fella was a great guy but I think he would be horrified at the multi-generational damage done by turning Dutton St from a productive street into a barren road.