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Here’s a letter from former Mayor Patrick Murphy to the current members of the city council. The subject is his mayoral portrait. He gave me permission to post the letter here. Councilors, I understand that you will consider tonight Councilor Mercier’s request that the “City Council Rules SC establish guidelines…
Read More »It’s 24 hours late, but I just finished watching the video of last night’s city council meeting. Here are my notes: Keith Parker owner of a condominium in Grand Manor Condominiums on Willard Street in Lowell. October 2008, DEP discovered “gross contamination” around the entire property. There are several methods…
Read More »Back in the spring of 2009, the Lowell School Committee was contemplating budget cuts. During the public comment portion of a school committee budget session, one individual – I believe it was a teacher – was speaking critically of the cuts. While she spoke, most of the members of the…
Read More »In case you’re looking for my notes on last night’s Lowell City Council meeting, I was previously scheduled to lead a talk at UMass Lowell on the subject of Lowell history so I wasn’t able to watch the meeting in real time. I will catch a replay as soon as…
Read More »Last Tuesday, several Lowell City Councilors outed themselves as vindictive bullies in their handling of the appointment of Salmira Mitchell to the Library Board of Trustees. Here’s the context of what happened: City Manager Lynch presented four board appointments to the city council. The first, of Dr. Julia Hans to…
Read More »I watched the local broadcast of the Lowell City Council meeting last night. To my surprise, a woman who offered to serve as a Trustee of the Pollard Memorial Library and whose appointment by City Manager Lynch was before the Council for a vote of approval was denied an opportunity…
Read More »CC Rourke asks to have Executive Session (to discuss with the manger his staying beyond his stated resignation date) vote taken out of order and have it held early in the meeting. Mayor Elliott relinquishes the chair and says he will oppose going into executive session. Says “we’re kind of…
Read More »Special meeting on hiring process for hiring new City Manager and Auditor. First item: Review Auditor job description and salary range of $85,000 to $100,000. Councilor Martin questions whether salary should be posted/advertised or left until the end and depend on the successful candidate. They add “municipal law experience” to…
Read More »An excerpt from Cotton Was King in a chapter written by historian Mary H. Blewett, longtime professor at now-UMass Lowell: ” . . . The movement for the adoption of Plan E [city manager-council government] was headed by Harvard-educated Yankee lawyer Woodbury F. Howard. City government under Plan E would…
Read More »The Lowell City Council meeting of January 14, 2014. The following is not a verbatim transcript but my notes taken as the councilors speak. For brevity’s sake, I just use the last names of councilors. Elliott: Reads letter from Auditor Sheryl Wright informing council of her planned retirement on February…
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