Lowell

Urban Renewal Walk Tomorrow

TOMORROW – Saturday – April 23, 2016 – 10 a.m. – SPECIAL TOUR Urban Renewal and UMass Lowell East Campus with Bob Forrant The Northern Canal Urban Renewal Project of the 1960s tore down the long-established Little Canada neighborhood and the Merrimack Mill complex to make way for new industry…

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Poet Joe Donahue: Game-Changing Review of His Latest Books

Michael Leong in the online cultural publication hyperallergic.com contributes what could be a game-changing review of recent books by poet Joseph Donahue (Lowell-connected and holder of an endowed professor’s chair at Duke University). Here’s the opening paragraph: Among contemporary American poets, Joseph Donahue is an underrecognized master. For years, he…

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Lowell Walks: Urban Renewal on April 23

April 23, 2016 – 10 a.m. – SPECIAL TOUR Urban Renewal and UMass Lowell East Campus with Bob Forrant The Northern Canal Urban Renewal Project of the 1960s tore down the long-established Little Canada neighborhood and the Merrimack Mill complex to make way for new industry that never came. Today,…

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Tourist in Your Own Town

About ten years ago, there was an annual program called “Be a Tourist in Your Own Town” organized by the Lowell Historic Board, Greater Merrimack Valley Convention and Visitor Bureau, National Park Service, and others. It was a franchise-type operation like the various “First Night” celebrations around the country. I…

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Lowell Week in Review: April 10, 2016

Apartments on Wellman Street Councilors Bill Samaras and Jim Leary had similar motions on the council agenda last Tuesday (full report on Tuesday’s meeting HERE). Both wanted reports from the city manager on the benefits of residential versus commercial use at Connector Park, the location of the large parcel at…

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First Thursday Walking Tour

There’s no such thing as bad weather; there’s only bad clothing. (Anonymous). Tomorrow night (April 7, 2016) I will lead a walking tour of a portion of the Lowell Canal system as part of Downtown Lowell First Thursdays. The tour will begin at 6 pm at Lowell National Park Visitor…

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Lowell City Council Meeting: April 5, 2016

Mayor Kennedy introduces Bryan Perry, the new city auditor. Councilor Leahy asks for a point of personal privilege, then moves that the council demand an apology from the government of Cambodia for statements by a government spokesman that were critical of Councilor Rita Mercier. Motion passes unanimously. Lowell National Park…

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