Just Killing Time Oof. That was brutal. Even as a way to kill time while waiting for election results, it was dreadful. The centerpiece was a meandering discussion about the Council’s ongoing effort—on the “City side”—to work with the School Committee to create a Joint Facilities Department, ostensibly to give City Hall more control over…

“Now, Let’s See Who You Really Are!” The theme of the night was rebranding. First, a marketing team from Fuseideas was present to roll out a new image for the City of Lowell—specifically, a new logo and slogan designed to bring “new life and vibrancy” to the city’s marketing materials, social media, website, and other…

Reckoning With Data “The Industrial Revolution and its consequences have been a disaster for the human race…[T]hey have destabilized society, have made life unfulfilling, have subjected human beings to indignities, have led to widespread psychological suffering…and have inflicted severe damage on the natural world. The continued development of technology will worsen the situation.“ – Industrial…

[I didn’t have time to do anything about the last meeting of the year on Wednesday morning. The meeting was kind of a dud – but it was the last meeting for Councilors Belanger, Jenness, and Yem. Each served the council and the city well, and I thank them for their service. That said, I wanted…

LINC’s Awakening Good morning, fanatics. A spell of lackluster meetings was finally broken last night as UMass Chancellor Julie Chen was present to provide an Informational Report on the LINC Project. If you are unfamiliar, LINC stands for the “Lowell Innovation Network Corridor.” LINC promises “collaborations with industry, government agencies and nonprofit organizations” in the…

TNA Some visionary once attempted to meld the world of the Lowell City Council with the world of professional wrestling. As is often the case, life imitates art and the two worlds collided at last night’s meeting. Ross Forman of TNA Wrestling was on-hand with Ash By Elegance (I don’t understand the name either), the…

Last night we were treated to a preliminary election in Districts 3, 7 and 8 as well as the first council meeting in what feels like forever. These events provided evidence that both the electorate and some councilors don’t care for what they’ve been served lately. Let’s take a peek. A Good Night for New…

1. Big Picture: What’s Been Raised and Spent: Total Raised & Spent (since 1/1/25): 2. The Numbers Can Be Decieving: For example, it sure looks like Francisco Maldonado is lapping the competition in terms of money raised. However, as has already been noted by both Dick Howe and Gerry Nutter, $20K of his $30K came…

Name something perfectly legal, but feels illegal… I’ll go first: pulling your car over, walking up to a stranger’s lawn, getting on a knee, and taking a photo of their lawn sign. If you missed Volume 1, you can go back and check it out here. DISTRICT 4 Wayne Jenness – Incumbent Soothing. This is…