A public hearing was held as part of the October 18 Lowell City Council meeting, and the Council unanimously voted in support of applying for the Cultural District designation. Meri Jenkins, of the Massachusetts Cultural Council, and LZ Nunn of COOL both presented, and a varity of community representatives spoke in favor of the initiative, including Maxine Farkas of Western Avenue Studios, Deb Belanger of the Greater Merrimack Valley Convention and Visitors Bureau, Walter Wright of 119 Gallery, Andy Jacobson of Brew'd Awakening Coffeehaus, and Steven Leon of Merrimack Repertory Theatre. Click here to read Steven's eloquent remarks made that night.
Public comments and questions are welcomed via email at hhagman@lowellma.gov, or by phone at 978.446.7162. For more information on the Cultural Districts Initiative, please visit the website of the Massachusetts Cultural Council.
COOL is working with local for-profit and non-profit partners in application to a State-designated Downtown Lowell Arts and Culture through the Massachusetts Cultural Council’s (MCC) Cultural Districts initiative. A Cultural District, as defined by MCC, is a specific geographical area in a city or town that has a concentration of cultural facilities, activities, and assets. The District is a walkable, compact area that is easily identifiable to visitors and residents and serves as a center of cultural, artistic and economic activity. Passed by the Massachusetts legislature in 2010, the statute that created cultural districts has specific goals. They are to attract artists and cultural enterprises; encourage business and job development; establish the district as a tourist destination; preserve and reuse historic buildings; enhance property values; and foster local cultural development.
“This is a tremendous opportunity to bring attention to the breadth of Lowell’s cultural assets. COOL is excited to work with our partners to promote and advance the cultural destinations and creative industries that make our city a vibrant hub for arts and activity” says LZ Nunn, Executive Director of the Cultural Organization of Lowell.
Downtown Lowell’s assets are well-established, including the Lowell Memorial Auditorium, Merrimack Repertory Theater, Middlesex Black Box Theater, UMASS Lowell Tsongas Center, New England Quilt Museum, Lowell National Historic Park Visitor Center, Whistler House Museum of Art, American Textile History Museum, Revolving Museum and the potential of the redevelopment of Smith Baker as a multidisciplinary cultural center, Brush Gallery and Artist Studios, Parker Gallery at the Whistler House Museum, Loading Dock Gallery at Western Avenue Studios. “With so many cultural attractions and over 300 artist studios, Lowell is the cultural center of the Merrimack Valley and perfectly positioned to meet the requirements of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts’ newly created Cultural Districts Initiative,” notes Nunn.
She added, “Monthly Open Studios, the Lowell Folk Festival, Winterfest, the Halloween Bash and Monster Stoll, City of Lights Parade, Kerouac Literary Festival, Puerto Rican Festival, Riverfest and other events also add to the year-round liveliness of downtown Lowell, along with the growing live music scene, with local and regional performers regularly featured at the Lowell Summer Music Series, Tsongas Backyard Music Series, Lowell Memorial Auditorium, The Tunnel at Revolving Museum, the Back Page, Blue Taleh, the Old Court and many other downtown restaurants.”
“The growing success of Lowell’s Open Studios highlights the vitality and impact of our arts community,” said Bernie Lynch. “Lowell is fast becoming an artistically unique destination. We are fortunate to have such a varied palette of creative people contributing to our cultural scene and to our economy. The success of events such as Lowell Open Studios also confirms the value the Cultural Organization of Lowell brings to promoting our creative economy.”
The proposed Downtown Lowell Cultural District’s borders incorporate and expand upon the existing Downtown Arts Overlay District, which was approved by the Lowell City Council in 1998. A copy of the Downtown Lowell Arts and Culture District may downloaded here.