LOWELL The number of unhoused people who call Lowell home jumped by a staggering 23% in just two months based on figures released by the Director of Homeless Initiatives Maura Fitzpatrick. In July, the office, which falls under the Department of Health and Human Services, counted 238 total adult homeless people in the city; by September, that number had risen to 291.
LOWELL Although many communities have unhoused people, not all communities provide services for their unhoused. Instead, they enter into agreements with cities like Lowell, that provide those services through places like the Lowell Transitional Living Center on Middlesex Street.
LOWELL Kenny, a 26-year resident of Lowell, said he survived the killing fields of the Khmer Rouge, but he wasn't sure how he would survive the night without a place to sleep.
LOWELL More than one year ago, City Councilor John Drinkwater submitted a motion requesting the Department of Planning and Development draft an accessory dwelling unit ordinance. It will finally get a public hearing at the council’s Tuesday night meeting and may come to a historic or histrionic vote.
THE CITY cleared its third of at least a half dozen known homeless encampments this week, and while three times wasn’t exactly the charm, it did appear that the administration was applying lessons learned in its handling of this complex and growing demographic that has bedeviled larger and better-resourced cities.