Lowell Experiences Housing Boom Amid Retail Slowdown

Lowell is tackling the housing shortage in Massachusetts. Numerous projects are permitted or under construction.

Several eyes are focused on The Edge building on Father Morissette Boulevard near Boarding House Park in the downtown district. The Edge was originally built as an off-campus residence hall for UMass Lowell students with 146 units. 

Community Teamwork Inc. tried but failed to acquire it for unhoused families. After financing issues arose, Needham-based Makor Corporate purchased the property and sought a zoning change to facilitate its transformation from dormitory to multifamily use. The complex would have four floor plans: private one-bedroom rooms at 487 square feet,  private two-bedrooms at 741 square feet, shared two-bedroom rooms of 947 square feet, and private four-bedroom rooms of 1,159 square feet, according to The (Lowell) Sun.

The Lowell Planning Board unanimously approved the zoning change.

The Planning Board also held a pre-application hearing for the River's Edge project. This project would replace the blighted Julian Steele public housing at the southern end of Gorham Street in Lowell near the Chelmsford border. The project, which was originally approved for 181 units, is expanding to 187 units, with most units already built.

In the Acre neighborhood, Suffolk Place is offering 33 condominiums aimed at first-time homebuyers earning at or below 100% of the area median income. Off-street parking is not part of the design plan, although bike racks and transportation options will be provided to residents.

Despite these housing successes, retail has taken a heavy hit in Lowell. 

The retail sector faces setbacks with the closure of Walgreens stores in the Highlands neighborhood and on Broadway, reducing the number of Walgreens in Lowell to two: one at 54 Plain St. in the Lower Highlands and one at 1161 Bridge St. in the city's Centralville neighborhood.

The (Lowell) Sun also reported that Walgreens is the second health care retailer to close in Lowell. In 2021, the CVS on Merrimack Street shuttered its doors, transferring all prescriptions to its pharmacy on Bridge Street.