Catalyst for Civic Improvement
The Canalway
Senator Eileen Donoghue introduces Secretary of Transportation Stephanie Pollack to members of the Lowell Plan board. Photo by Tory Germann
The Lowell Plan supports a community effort to advance a vision of the Canalway as a valuable and unique urban amenity. In February, the Board heard a presentation by members of the Lowell Heritage Partnership (LHP), Fred Faust and Paul Marion, on the potential of the Canalway to fundamentally change Lowell into a city of the first rank, both as a tourist destination and as a location for business. The LHP is collaborating with City Manager Kevin Murphy and his planning staff.
Lowell Plan staff and board members attended workshops led by the Lowell Heritage Partnership in February, March and April that brought together volunteer planners to develop ideas for ways and means to make the Lowell canal system a more active public- and private-sector resource. Community planners formed groups organized around Culture, Economic Development, and Tourism. Participants developed a base-line of knowledge and information about the canal system as it relates to their particular topic. Short-, medium-, and long-term action items will be identified in a report this October.