Attendees: Ed Barry, Boott Cotton Mills; Brown Miller, Boott Cotton Mills; Nancy Kleniewski, UMass - Lowell and Center City Committee; Michael J. Smith, American Textile History Museum; Marlene Faulkner-Hussein, Middlesex Community College and Riverplace Towers resident; Father John Cox, St. Joseph the Worker Shrine; Peter Aucella, National Park Service; Bill Lipchitz, Center City Committee; Amy Korte', DPD
Matthew Higgins, Downtown Plan Project Manager, opened the meeting with an overview of property ownership and demographic statistics compiled by DPD. In terms of both land and building area, the City of Lowell was determined to be the largest property owner in the Downtown. This trend is due to the presence of both the City Hall and the Lowell High School in the Downtown. Several "slum" landlords were noted to be large owners of property in the Downtown.
Bill Lipchitz asked which areas have the most development potential and what areas are the most underutilized. Matt Higgins asked for responses from the CAC regarding this question. The following responses were received:
· It was noted that the riverwalk currently has an unclear connection to the Downtown, and Downtown's connection to the river should be better utilized. Henry Marchand and the Lowell Plan are currently working on a marketing plan for the Riverwalk, and should be included in this discussion.
· The River Place parking lot behind the Fred C. Church property is currently underutilized and has potential for a better connection to the Riverwalk.
· The City owns the land adjacent to the Tsongas Arena, and the Post Office currently has a five-year lease agreement for the property. It was noted that this property has good development potential and could be utilized for an office complex or additional convention space.
· The block of Arcand Drive across from City Hall (including the Masonic Temple and Professional Building) is underutilized, and many of the buildings face the wrong direction.
· It was noted that the High School will need expansion within 5-10 years, and it would be extremely unfeasible for the School to be moved to a different location due to the significant investment in existing facilities. The School will have to look for additional space in the Downtown to suit their needs.
Peter Aucella noted that parking would be a critical component of any future development in the Downtown. Ed Barry stated that parking was especially crucial to the continued development of the Boott Mills complex. Boott Mills developers need additional parking commitments from the City in order to proceed with additional rehabilitation. Matt Higgins stated that an analysis of parking options in the Downtown would be completed for the next CAC meeting.
Father John Cox noted that dealing with uncooperative landlords would also be a key component of any future development of the Downtown. Downtown development is often stalled because landlords are unwilling to rent vacant space or unreasonable regarding renting available space. Peter Aucella stated that a possible solution to this issue would be for the Lowell Plan or another organization to purchase a few key buildings in the Downtown from uncooperative landlords. CAC members agreed that this issue was the biggest problem in the Downtown, and Matt Higgins stated that possible solutions to this issue would be one of the focuses for the next meeting.
Matt Higgins stated that the following issues would be discussed at the next CAC meeting:
· Strategies to get uncooperative landlords out of the Downtown
· Analysis of existing parking in the Downtown and strategies to accommodate future parking needs
· Analysis of development options in the Downtown
· Update on obtaining additional residential input
· Continued visioning for the Downtown
Send questions and comments to:
Thomas Galligani, Downtown Plan Project Manager
Division of Planning and Development
J.F.K. Civic Center
50 Arcand Drive
Lowell MA 01852
(978) 970-4276
tgalliga@ci.lowell.ma.us
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