Downtown Plan Draft Section 1 Introduction
Downtown Plan Draft Section 2 Existing Conditions
Downtown Plan Draft Section 4 Community Perspective
Downtown Plan Draft Section 5 Strategies
City of Lowell Downtown Plan Home Page
| 1992 | 1997 | Change 1992 - 1997 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Establishments | Establishments | Number | Percent | MASSACHUSETTS | |
| Retail Trade | 26,807 | 26,209 | (598) | -2.2% | |
| Food and Accommodations | 11,684 | 14,827 | 3,143 | 26.9% | LOWELL MSA |
| Retail Trade | 835 | 785 | (50) | -6.0% | |
| Food and Accommodations | 426 | 540 | 114 | 26.8% | LOWELL |
| Retail Trade | 252 | 256 | 4 | 1.6% | |
| Food and Accommodations | 148 | 174 | 26 | 17.6% | |
Table 3.2: Trends in Retail Sales - Lowell, Lowell MSA, Massachusetts - 1992 - 1997 (In Current Dollars)
| 1992 | 1997 | Change 1992 - 1997 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sales | Sales | Amount | Percent | MASSACHUSETTS | |
| Retail Trade | $ 55,223,520,840 | $ 64,260,118,656 | $ 9,036,597,816 | 16.4% | |
| Food and Accommodations | $ 7,072,344,296 | $ 10,182,947,477 | $ 3,110,603,181 | 44.0% | LOWELL MSA |
| Retail Trade | $ 1,579,308,222 | $ 1,760,938,407 5 | $181,630,185 | 11.5% | |
| Food and Accommodations | $ 213,144,253 | $ 331,331,298 | $118,187,045 | 55.4% | LOWELL |
| Retail Trade | $ 464,266,005 | $ 518,232,673 | $ 53,966,668 | 11.6% | |
| Food and Accommodations | $ 70,898,215 | $ 71,986,237 | $ 1,088,022 | 1.5% | |
Based on these figures, the true question is whether Downtown Lowell is capitalizing on the increase in retail sales. Based on numbers from the 1997 U.S. Economic Census, DPD has estimated the amount of retail sales in the Downtown Core to be $45.6 million. This means that Downtown Core is capturing approximately 2.6% of the Greater Lowell retail market, and is capturing approximately 8.8% of the Lowell retail market. While Downtown Lowell is doing well in terms of the traditional Lowell market, the Downtown must increase its share of the Greater Lowell market in order to be competitive.
MARKET SEGMENTS
A 2000 study by the DPD identified five major groups of potential customers: Downtown residents, Downtown workers, students, tourists and Greater Lowell residents.
Downtown Residents
According to demographic analysis for the Downtown, residents of the Downtown are composed three distinct groups: retired elderly, low-income ethnic groups, and young professionals. An overview of these groups is provided in the Existing Conditions portion of this document. Each of these groups has a different type of impact upon the Downtown market.
The elderly compose over 19% of the Downtown - creating a major subset of the Downtown population. However, the number of elderly residents in the Downtown seems to have leveled off in recent years due to the lack of new elderly based housing in the Downtown. The elderly market is defined by two characteristics. First, the elderly population tends to have limited mobility, depending on methods other than driving for transportation in and out of their residences. Therefore, the elderly in the Downtown tends to be a "captive" population that is extremely likely to purchase goods and services in the Downtown. Second, the elderly tend to live on fixed income levels and do not have a high level of purchasing power. Due to this limited purchasing power, the elderly market tends to attract stores that sell basic necessities, such as health care services and pharmacies, and stores that sell low cost items of many kinds.
Different minority groups compose another significant portion of the Downtown population. Over 13% of the Downtown population is of Asian heritage, and over 17% is of Hispanic heritage. Many of these individuals are recent immigrants that have limited incomes and difficulty speaking English. These groups tend to shop at stores that are directly targeted towards their lifestyles and culture. Stores where native languages and discount, off-price items can be purchased are popular for shopping. Although few of these stores exist in the Downtown Core, a significant cluster of these businesses exist on Merrimack Street across from City Hall.
Finally, the number of young professionals in the Downtown spend quite differently than the other two groups. Although they have more purchasing power than other Downtown residents do, they are also more likely to be mobile than other residents. Many of these residents tend to work outside of the Downtown, creating a situation where Downtown actually competes with other communities and shopping areas for the attention of these residents. However, these residents are likely to use basic services in the Downtown (i.e. banking, restaurants, etc.) which are in close proximity to their home. In terms of these professionals, they could be attracted to spend more money in the Downtown through the creation of a better shopping experience that meets the needs of this population.
Downtown Workers
Due to the Downtown's prominence as a government and educational center, Downtown Lowell is a major employment center. An analysis conducted by the Division of Planning and Development in 1999, shown in Table 3.3, revealed that over 5,200 daytime employees work in the Downtown Plan planning area. These workers are an important market for restaurants, drug and convenience stores, personal services (i.e. health care and beauty/barber shops), and potentially clothing and gift shops. The retail interest of these employees tend to be things that can be purchased on and around a lunch hour.
Table 3.3: Daily Number of Workers In Downtown Plan Planning Area
| Employment Sector | Number of Employees |
|---|---|
| Education | 972 |
| Government | 1,254 |
| Museum | 157 |
| Office | 2,504 |
| Restaurant | 137 |
| Retail | 202 |
| TOTAL DOWNTOWN WORKERS | 5,223 |
Students
Due to the presence of Lowell High School and Middlesex Community College directly in the Downtown, students make a major presence in the Downtown. Approximately 3,000 students attend classes at Lowell High School, and an additional 3,000 students attend day and evening classes at Middlesex Community College's Lowell Campus. UMass Lowell's campuses, which are adjacent to the Downtown, also draw an additional 8,600 students near the Downtown area. Although this massive number of students in the Downtown might appear to be a huge market for the Downtown, most of these students, especially those in High School, have little disposable income. However, they also have few financial responsibilities, allowing them to spend most of the money that they earn.
Table 3.4: Daily Number of Students In Downtown Plan Planning Area
| School | Number of Students |
|---|---|
| Lowell High School | 3,000 |
| Middlesex Community College - Day and Evening | 3,393 |
| TOTAL DOWNTOWN STUDENTS | 6,393 |
Tourists
The term "tourist" can be understood to have several meanings. For the purposes of this study, a "tourist" is defined to include two distinct groups with slightly different behaviors. First, "traditional tourists," who stay overnight in the Lowell area or live over 100 miles away, are included in this definition. In addition, "day visitors," who come to a local attraction but live nearby, are also included. The large number of attractions in the Downtown, including the Lowell National Historic Park, Tsongas Arena, LeLacheur Stadium, Lowell Memorial Auditorium and other attractive smaller museums, generates a large number of tourists to the Downtown. In addition, the Doubletree Hotel and its convention space provides a key hospitality resource to those seeking to visit the Downtown.
According to studies conducted by UMass-Lowell, over 1.3 million tourists annually visit Lowell. The National Historic Park is clearly the biggest attraction in the Downtown, bringing over 700,000 tourists into Downtown Lowell for daily services and the Lowell Folk Festival. Other major attractions in the Downtown include the Tsongas Arena, with over 300,000 visitors, and LeLacheur Park, with over 180,000 visitors.
Table 3.5: Annual Number of Tourists In Downtown Plan Planning Area
| Organization | Timeframe | Attendance |
|---|---|---|
| Boarding House Park | Summer - 1999 | 18,000 |
| LeLacheur Park | Summer - 1999 | 180,077 |
| Lowell National Historical Park | October 1998 - September 1999 | 555,220 |
| Lowell Memorial Auditorium | July 1998 - June 1999 | 204,151 |
| Tsongas Arena | July 1998 - June 1999 | 308,000 |
| New England Quilt Museum | July 1998 - June 1999 | 18,507 |
| Merrimack Reparatory Theatre | September 1998 - June 1999 | 58,160 |
| American Textile History Museum* | January 1999 - June 1999 | 24,579 |
| Whistler House Museum of Art | July 1999 - June 2000 | 4,470 |
| TOTAL DOWNTOWN TOURISTS | 1,371,164 |
The actual financial impact of tourists on the Downtown is mixed. Tourists and visitors are an obvious market for the hospitality industry - hotels, restaurants and souvenir shops. However, many day visitors may not spend their money in other areas, including many traditional retail stores and entertainment venues. According to the Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism, over half of tourist expenditures are made on transportation, and only 6% of tourist expenditures are made on general retail. While Downtown tourism may bolster the restaurant industry and some retailers, this same impact may not come to the majority of retailers in the Downtown.
Table 3.6: Percentage of Direct Traveler Expenditures by Industry Group
| Public Transportation | 39.4% |
| Auto Transportation | 11.3% |
| Lodging | 20.1% |
| Food Service | 17.6% |
| Entertainment / Recreation | 5.6% |
| General Retail | 6.1% |
Greater Lowell Residents
This group, which is extremely large with a high level of purchasing power, represents the greatest level of untapped market potential for the Downtown. However, this group is also the hardest to reach, since they have the greatest level of choices for shopping. Residents of suburban communities surrounding Lowell (approximately 250,000 residents within 7 miles) tend to be of higher income and to have the time and the means to travel to whatever establishments offer the goods and services they want at the prices they are willing to pay. As shown in Table 3.7, the income level of households within a one mile radius and a seven mile radius of Downtown greatly varies. Downtown Lowell already attracts some of these people and must attract additional members of this segment in order to be more competitive. This segment can generally be attracted if Downtown offers a shopping experience that meets the needs of this important segment of the population.
Table 3.7: Median Household Income
| 1 Mile Ring of Downtown | 3 Mile Ring of Downtown | 5 Mile Ring of Downtown |
|---|---|---|
| $27,001 | $41,627 | $50,820 |
DOWNTOWN ANCHORS
An anchor can be defined as a use in the Downtown that generates a high number of visits to the area. While anchors have been traditionally defined as large retail stores (especially department stores), most anchors in downtown, such as Lowell, have shifted away from these large retail establishments. As the economy of the Downtown has continued to shift away from larger department stores, Downtown Lowell has seen the departure of Jordan-Marsh, the final department store in the Downtown, and a continued turn towards smaller retail boutiques.
The Lowell retail market is now anchored upon many non-traditional traffic generators in the Downtown. Without a major retail establishment in the Downtown, Lowell's retail market is tied to the presence of major Downtown institutions. Major institutional uses, such as Lowell City Hall, Lowell High School and Middlesex Community College, and major attractions, such as Lowell National Historic Park, Tsongas Arena and LeLacheur Park, currently serve as major generators of foot traffic in the Downtown.
RETAIL INVENTORY
During August 2000, the Division of Planning and Development (DPD) conducted an inventory of businesses in the Downtown Core on a store-by-store and building-by-building basis. The inventory covers approximately 533,663 square feet of ground-level storefront space in the Downtown Core, and 145 storefronts in the Downtown Core. This inventory includes the name and address of each business, the business type and the estimated square footage of street level spaces. The variety of businesses located in the Downtown can be seen in Tables 3.8 and 3.9, which breaks these businesses down according to NAICS code.
Table 3.8: Downtown Core Retail Businesses by NAICS Code
| Number of Businesses | Total Square Footage | Average Square Footage / Business | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4422 - Home Furnishing Stores | 2 | 5174 | 2587 |
| 4431 - Electronic and Appliance Stores | 1 | 858 | 858 |
| 4442 - Lawn and Garden Equipment Stores | 1 | 4200 | 4200 |
| 4452 - Specialty Food Stores | 2 | 2930 | 1465 |
| 4453 - Beer, Wine and Liquor Stores | 2 | 3327 | 1664 |
| 4461 - Health and Personal Care Stores | 3 | 10662 | 3554 |
| 4481 - Clothing Stores | 6 | 27158 | 4526 |
| 4482 - Shoe Stores | 1 | 5326 | 5326 |
| 4483 - Jewelry, Luggage and Leather Stores | 5 | 7890 | 1578 |
| 4511 - Sporting Goods, Hobby and Instruments Stores | 2 | 7103 | 3552 |
| 4512 - Book, Periodical and Music Stores | 4 | 12645 | 3161 |
| 4529 - Other General Merchandise Stores | 2 | 7074 | 3537 |
| 4531 - Florists | 2 | 4110 | 2055 |
| 4533 - Used Merchandise Stores | 3 | 8455 | 2818 |
| 4539 - Other Misc. Merchandise Stores | 1 | 2810 | 2810 |
| TOTAL RETAIL BUSINESSES / SQUARE FEET OCCUPIED | 37 | 109,722 |
Table 3.9: Downtown Core Restaurants by NAICS Code
| Number of Businesses | Total Square Footage | Average Square Footage / Business | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7221 - Full Service Restaurants | 21 | 56,718 | 2,701 |
| 7222 - Limited Service Eating Places | 2 | 2,139 | 1,070 |
| 7224 - Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) | 4 | 11,867 | 2,967 |
| TOTAL RESTAURANTS / SQUARE FEET OCCUPIED | 27 | 70,724 |
Vacancies
As discussed in the Existing Conditions section of this document, the percentage of vacant retail space is relatively low in the Downtown Retail Office Core. Only 7.8% of the 1st floor storefront space in the Downtown Core is vacant. From a different perspective, there are 145 retail storefronts in the district, of which 10 storefronts (6.9%) were vacant. For an older central business district that is not located on a major highway, these statistics show that Downtown Lowell is doing relatively well in terms of filling these storefront spaces.
Underutilization of Storefronts
While Downtown Lowell has been successful in filling 1st floor storefront spaces, the high highest and best use of these storefronts is often not attained. Most successful downtowns have a high proportion of retail and service retail uses in first floor storefront space. While there are exceptions to this rule, the presence of retail use in first floor storefronts creates foot traffic in the Downtown and generates street-level activity.
For the purposes of the inventory, first floor storefronts in the Downtown Core were categorized as "underutilized" if they did not contain a retail or service retail use. According to this criteria, the underutilization of storefronts in Downtown is extremely high, running at over 60%. As discussed in the Existing Conditions section of this document, institutional uses, in combination with selective 1st floor vacancies, occupy 12.8% of the 1st floor space in the Downtown Core. Other office uses, including lawyer and doctor offices, generate the vast majority of additional underutilized storefront space in the Downtown.
While underutilized storefronts are not as problematic as a vacant storefront, the underutilization of storefronts create a new set of problems for the Downtown. First, office and institutional uses in storefronts limit the amount of potential street-level activity and pedestrian traffic in the Downtown. Outside of lunchtime, these uses can create unusually quiet shopping hours in the Downtown. Also, retail establishments may have few possibilities for location if storefronts are occupied by a large number of office or institutional uses. In addition, the improper use of Downtown storefronts will create vacancies in upper floors of Downtown buildings generally designed for office use. This last result is extremely noticeable in Lowell. Over 27 percent of the upper story office space in the Downtown is currently vacant.
BUSINESS CLUSTERS
A business clusters is defined as a group of businesses that serve the same or related markets. Amongst smaller businesses, businesses grouping together is extremely positive since these groupings generate several stops for shopping within an area of the Downtown. The cluster effect gives shoppers variety within a shopping area and generates healthy levels of competition amongst businesses.
The most identifiable cluster within the Downtown is the Southeast Asian cluster located on Merrimack Street across from City Hall. Approximately fourteen Southeast Asian businesses are located in this portion of Merrimack Street. These businesses span from traditional restaurants to grocery stores to video rental facilities. Not only do these businesses attract individuals from the Downtown, they also attract shoppers from the Acre and Lower Highlands neighborhoods of the City.
Other notable clusters in the Downtown include the proliferation of pawnshops, dollar stores and low cost or used merchandise establishments located near the intersection of Bridge and Merrimack Streets. Another easily identifiable business cluster is located at the intersection of Merrimack and Palmer Streets, where many of the higher price retail establishments and restaurants have begun to center themselves.
RETAIL GROWTH POTENTIAL
Based on numbers from the 1997 U.S. Economic Census, DPD has determined that the demand for traditional retail products to be $518 million for the City and $1,761 million for the Lowell MSA. By dividing the estimated level of retail sales in the Downtown Core - $45.6 million - by the total demand for these areas, it can be concluded that Downtown Core is capturing approximately 2.6% of the Greater Lowell retail market, and is capturing approximately 8.8% of the Lowell retail market. The remainder of this retail demand is being captured by businesses within other trade areas within the Lowell MSA and the City.
Based on the 533,663 square feet of available storefront space in the Downtown Core, it is assumed that the Core is generating an average of $85.49 per square foot in retail sales. This figure is a snapshot of the low productivity of the Downtown retail trade. The non-retail uses located in traditional storefront space are limiting the productivity of retail in the Downtown. If a greater level of Downtown Core storefront space were used for retail uses, then a greater level of retail sales would be generated and the Downtown would have a higher level of sales per square foot.
The low levels of productivity and market capture for the Downtown Core demonstrates that the Downtown has not reached its full retail potential. The Lowell MSA has a high level of purchasing power, but this spending is not being captured. In addition, the Downtown has an ample amount of storefront space to capture this market, but this space is not being used in a productive manner.
Barring a significant decline in the retail market, the Downtown has the potential to increase its share of the Greater Lowell retail market within a short period of time. By filling vacant Downtown storefronts and converting first floor office space into retail space, the Downtown could easily capture an additional 2% to 5% of the retail market within the next five years.
OFFICE MARKET INDICATORS AND TRENDS
The following economic indicators provide an overview of the office market in Lowell and the Lowell MSA:
· In upper story office space, the Downtown Core contains a total of 120 office occupants, which occupy a total of 617,660 square feet of space. An additional 63 traditional office space users occupy an additional 269,211 square feet of space in traditional retail storefronts in the Downtown.
· Over 2,500 office employees currently work in the Downtown. Most of these employees work at general purpose (multiple tenant) facilities versus single tenant facilities, such as a corporate headquarters.
· The majority of office users in the Downtown serve Downtown residents, workers and other residents/businesses located within the Greater Lowell area. Office users such as banks, insurance agencies, legal services, health and medical services, social/human services are tied to these local residents and businesses.
Lowell is also benefiting from the growth of the high-tech economy and the subsequent office space crisis in the greater Boston area. With office space rents in Boston and Cambridge averaging at $60/square foot, the hot technology market has squeezed all of the available office space out of the immediate greater Boston area, and is spreading out in areas west and north of Boston.(6) In particular, Lowell is benefiting from its location along the Rt.3 and I-495 corridors, which are becoming new technology corridors with cheaper rent levels.
The impact of Greater Boston's constrained office market has been an authentic boon for Downtown Lowell. Estimates of the amount of vacant and available office space in the Lowell area currently vary from 2% to 5%.(7) With the exception of properties owned by Louis Saab, the demand for office space in the Downtown Lowell can clearly be seen in the high number of properties that are full or almost completely full. The two major office properties in Downtown, Wannalancit and Boott Mills, have been at these extraordinary levels of occupancy for months, and Boott Mills is planning to capture the hot office market through additional expansion.
In addition to high-tech office space, traditional office markets in Lowell have experienced significant growth. Since 1992, 400 jobs in the finance, insurance, real estate (FIRE) sector have been created, and FIRE jobs compose over 4 percent of the total Lowell employment. In addition, 1,000 jobs in the government sector have been created since 1992, and these jobs compose 17 percent of the total employment in Lowell. If these trends continue for the next five years, 1,230 new jobs will be created within the FIRE and government sectors, and a demand for approximately 246,000 square feet of office space will be created within Lowell.
Table 3.10: Lowell Employment by Office Sector
| YEAR | E M P L O Y M E N T | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FIRE | Government | TOTAL LOWELL JOBS | |||
| Jobs | Percent of Total Lowell Jobs | Jobs | Percent of Total Lowell Jobs | ||
| 1992 | 1,092 | 3.1% | 4,652 | 13.3% | 34,928 |
| 1993 | 1,044 | 3.2% | 4,587 | 13.9% | 32,995 |
| 1994 | 1,176 | 3.6% | 4,621 | 14.3% | 32,385 |
| 1995 | 1,157 | 3.7% | 4,712 | 14.9% | 31,534 |
| 1996 | 1,223 | 4.0% | 4,796 | 15.6% | 30,801 |
| 1997 | 1,257 | 3.9% | 5,313 | 16.6% | 32,046 |
| 1998 | 1,397 | 4.2% | 5,524 | 16.8% | 32,904 |
| 1999 | 1,491 | 4.4% | 5,690 | 17.0% | 33,555 |
OFFICE INVENTORY
Most of the office space in the Downtown is located in older facilities in the Downtown. This space is generally located above storefronts in the Downtown Core, or located in campus/office park style settings in Wannalancit or Boott Mills. New office construction and modern offices in the Downtown is limited by the lack of vacant and developable land in the Downtown. Since 1964, only three new general-purpose office buildings have been built in the Downtown Planning area: the 21 George Street Building, Gateway I, and Gateway II.
In comparison to the skyrocketing rents of the Boston MSA, the rents for office space in Downtown Lowell are relatively cheap. However, office prices in the Downtown are rising. Most of the "higher end" office space within the Downtown has topped the $20 / square foot level, and these prices continue to escalate.
During August 2000, the Division of Planning and Development (DPD) conducted an inventory of businesses in the Downtown Core on a store-by-store and building-by-building basis. The inventory covers approximately 533,663 square feet of ground-level storefront space in the Downtown Core, as well as 813,933 square feet of upper-story office space in the Downtown Core. This inventory includes the name and address of each business, the business type and the estimated square footage of street level spaces. The variety of businesses located in the upper story office space in Downtown can be seen in Table 3.11, which breaks these businesses down according to NAICS code.
Table 3.11: Upper Story Office Space Tenants by NAICS Code
| Number of Businesses | Total Square Footage | Average Square Footage / Business | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4214 - | Professional and Commercial Equipment Supplies and Wholesalers | 2 | 20294 | 10147 |
| 4431 - | Electronics and Appliance Stores | 1 | 1408 | 1408 |
| 4441 - | Building Materials and Supply Dealers | 1 | 8400 | 8400 |
| 4481 - | Clothing Stores | 1 | 16203 | 16203 |
| 4511 - | Sporting Goods, Hobby and Musical Instrument Stores | 1 | 14553 | 14553 |
| 4543 - | Direct Selling Establishments | 2 | 5530 | 2765 |
| 5111 - | Newspaper, Periodical, Book and Database Publishers | 1 | 46964 | 46964 |
| 5121 - | Motion Picture and Video Industries | 1 | 994 | 994 |
| 5211 - | Monetary Authorities - Central Bank | 5 | 53883 | 10776 |
| 5222 - | Non-Depository Credit Intermediation | 3 | 5953 | 1984 |
| 5311 - | Lessors of Real Estate | 4 | 8445 | 2111 |
| 5313 - | Activities Related to Real Estate | 2 | 1887 | 943 |
| 5411 - | Legal Services | 35 | 97129 | 2775 |
| 5412 - | Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping and Payroll Services | 1 | 1500 | 1500 |
| 5414 - | Specialized Design Services | 2 | 4532 | 2266 |
| 5415 - | Computer Systems Design and Related Services | 4 | 15401 | 3850 |
| 5417 - | Scientific Research and Development Services | 2 | 30494 | 15247 |
| 5418 - | Advertising and Related Services | 2 | 5794 | 2897 |
| 5616 - | Investigation and Security Services | 1 | 867 | 867 |
| 5619 - | Other Support Services | 1 | 8600 | 8600 |
| 6113 - | Colleges, Universities and Professional Schools | 2 | 32739 | 16369 |
| 6116 - | Other Schools of Instruction | 1 | 4783 | 4783 |
| 6211 - | Offices of Physicians | 4 | 19093 | 4773 |
| 6212 - | Offices of Dentists | 3 | 3806 | 1268 |
| 6213 - | Offices of Other Health Practitioners | 6 | 22129 | 3688 |
| 6214 - | Outpatient Care Centers | 2 | 12514 | 6257 |
| 6241 - | Individual and Family Services | 10 | 42527 | 4252 |
| 7115 - | Independent Artists, Writers and Performers | 1 | 1470 | 1470 |
| 7221 - | Full Service Restaurants | 2 | 5236 | 2618 |
| 7224 - | Drinking Places | 2 | 9494 | 4747 |
| 8132 - | Grant-Making and Giving Services | 2 | 6485 | 3242 |
| 8133 - | Social Advocacy Organizations | 1 | 1500 | 1500 |
| 8139 - | Business, Professional, Labor, Political and Similar Organizations | 4 | 36764 | 9191 |
| 9211 - | Executive, Legislative and Other General Government Support | 7 | 67929 | 9704 |
| 9221 - | Justice, Public Order and Safety Activities | 1 | 2360 | 2360 |
| TOTAL UPPER STORY BUSINESSES / SQUARE FEET OCCUPIED | 120 | 617,660 |
According to the results of this survey, the Downtown appears to be replete in its number of law offices, which occupy 11% of the office space in the Downtown. In addition, a large number of non-profit family service organizations, medical offices and governmental agencies maintain a large presence in the Downtown.
OFFICE GROWTH POTENTIAL
Barring any uncertainties in the market, Downtown Lowell stands poised to capture additional future growth in the office market. If current trends continue, the FIRE and government sectors will expand to occupy an additional 246,000 square feet of office space within Lowell. In addition, the technology sector continues to grow and occupy additional office space within the Greater Boston area - especially outer lying areas with lower rents like Lowell. According to many experts, the technology sector will continue to grow through the next few years until a drastic shortage of labor supply or capital ultimately halts future growth.(8)
If Downtown Lowell can optimistically capture 10-15% of the office space that potentially be created through growth in the FIRE and government sectors, then an additional 24,600 to 36,900 square feet of office space will be absorbed. The growth in the technology sector is more unpredictable. Based on analysis by DPD, high-tech firms have occupied approximately 75,000 square feet of office space within the Downtown within the past year. It is highly likely that this recent jump in the amount of occupied office space is just an aberration caused by the crunch for space in the Greater Boston real estate market. Therefore, it is difficult to accurately predict the level of demand that will be created due to the high-tech field. However, many experts feel that type of demand is likely to be relatively high until the high-tech marketplace mellows.
The question for Downtown Lowell will be whether even the hot office market can even fill up the thousands of square feet of vacant office space that either currently exists or will be redeveloped in the Downtown. The Downtown Core currently has 226,945 square feet of vacant office space. In addition, Boott Mills is redeveloping 200,000 square feet of space that will be available in June 2000, and an additional 200,000 square feet that will be available in 2001-2002. The potential office space that Lowell can capture through the growth in both the FIRE/government sector and high-tech sector makes an impact on this available space, but will not fill half the available office space in the Downtown. While the Downtown is currently experiencing a crunch in the office market, the Downtown and rest of the City may be responding with an overproduction of office space.
Two major issues will certainly have to be addressed in order to fill up Downtown office space: competition and "uncooperative landlords." New office developments are also being planned throughout the City, creating additional competition for new office space. Most notably, the 4th Cross Point tower will be built in 2001 creating 400,000 square feet of additional office space in the Lowell area. Lowell developments such as Cross Point and major office park development in nearby communities will provide a significant amount of competition to Downtown office development. The Downtown must find new methods to become competitive to new developments in other areas in order to continue to attract office users.
Similarly, a small number of Downtown landlords own a large amount of the vacant office space in the Downtown. "Uncooperative landlords" are loosely defined as Downtown property owners that maintain their properties but have a considerable amount of vacant retail/office space or rent out their properties to less than desirable uses. While a great deal of upper story office space may be vacant, the landlords that own these properties often are less than willing to rehabilitate or rent this space. If landlords continue to make renting existing space difficult, then this situation presents a major hurdle in finding space for office users coming into the Downtown. If hassled, office users may go to a development outside of the Downtown or the City and find similarly priced office space to occupy. The Downtown must find ways to mitigate the uncooperative landlord issue in order to maximize the amount of office space located in the Downtown.
Downtown Plan Project Manager
Division of Planning and Development
J.F.K. Civic Center
50 Arcand Drive
Lowell MA 01852
(978) 970-4276
tgallaga@ci.lowell.ma.us
Downtown Plan Draft Section 1 Introduction
Downtown Plan Draft Section 2 Existing Conditions
Downtown Plan Draft Section 4 Community Perspective
Downtown Plan Draft Section 5 Strategies
City of Lowell Downtown Plan Home Page