The 24 hours before Thanksgiving are electric. If I had a list of the most “overserved” nights of my life, I’d say half of them occurred in my 20s on Thanksgiving Eve. Always a Gong Show. Alas, the fun days of my youth have been replaced by the less fun days of council meeting recaps. In that vein, let’s take a gander at a sliver of last night’s meeting.
The Needles and the Damage Done
In the wake of last week’s vote in favor of an ordinance to ban supervised injection sites, the Council found itself debating two closely related issues: needle distribution near schools and the broader role of harm-reduction programs in Lowell. First, a proposed ordinance that would prohibit the distribution of clean needles within 1,000 feet of any school. Next came a Motion Response from Lisa Golden, Director of Health and Human Services, relaying that the Board of Health “would advise against an ordinance prohibiting Syringe Services Programs (SSP) 1,000 feet from schools and parks.”
The ordinance appears rooted in councilors’ understandable frustration with discarded needles in parks and school zones. The logic—one must assume—is that needles handed out within 1,000 feet of a school are then used and discarded within that same radius. Councilor Mercier also expressed concern that needle exchanges aren’t strictly “1-for-1,” noting that one used needle can be exchanged for ten clean ones, leaving up to nine unaccounted for.
Members, Joanne Keegan and Erin Gendron, were present to provide perspective from the Board of Health. Notably, that the goal of such programs is the elimination or mitigation of disease rather than removal of needles. However, Ms. Keegan repeatedly stressed that communities with SSP actually have fewer discarded needles in public. Finally, the proposed ban would have consequences for existing exchange programs already in existence that would be eliminated by the strict letter of the proposed law.
The council ultimately referred the matter to subcommittee for more discussion. Depending on your perspective, this could be viewed as a thoughtful fine-tuning of harm-reduction policy—or as part of a broader trend toward dismantling it. Personally, I supported last week’s injection-site ban; I see that step as going too far down the harm-reduction road. But if the council now looks to undercut more modest, widely accepted interventions, I think that would be a mistake.
Thankful to Be a Lowellian
A list of things you are thankful for in a blog before Thanksgiving is some hack bullshit. But acknowledging that fact makes it… slightly less egregious? I think it’s been a pretty good year, and what better time than now? Let’s go with it.
1. We don’t live in Dracut.
Always a great place to start when evaluating your life’s circumstances.
2. Our parks and open spaces are getting better.
ARPA money is actually showing up in the real world. Have you seen the size of that slide in the St. Louis Park renovation? The new $1M-plus baseball field at the North Common? The Reilly School playground rebuild? The list goes on. So…I guess I’m thankful that an infectious respiratory disease somehow led to spending new slides, swings and dugouts? Weird country.
3. We’re standing up to capital—for the common good.
Recently, the council signaled it would prioritize residents and environmental justice over Markley’s profit motives. Earlier this year, the council advanced a wage-theft ordinance to protect workers. And they’ve pushed for a requirement that 25% of construction-project hires come from Lowell residents. You don’t see this kind of backbone at the national level.
4. Vague Frontrunner City™ Stuff.
“Something something… big plans… something something trust us… it’s coming.” I have no idea what any of it means, but I’m thankful it appears that irons are, in fact, in the fire. The same goes for the LINC Project.
5. Democracy still works here.
A few more people voted in 2025 than in 2023, which counts as progress in municipal-turnout math. District 3 voters also reminded everyone that residents—not councilors—should choose their own representation. As a result, we’ll welcome three new councilors in 2026: Belinda Juran (D3), Sean McDonough (D4), and Sidney Liang (D7). New blood is healthy.
6. 311 is Up and Running.
It’s been talked about for years, and now we have it. Check it out if you have not.
6A. Not Dracut.
Worth mentioning twice.
4 responses to “Government Was Happening: November 25, 2025”
“Members, Joanne Keegan and Erin Gendron, were present to provide perspective from the Board of Health. Notably, that the goal of such programs is the elimination or mitigation of disease rather than removal of needles.”
That’s a very easy position to take when neither one of them lives in neighborhoods where the schools are surrounded with discarded needles. Maybe they would care more about needle removal if residents near the South Common collected all those discarded needles and dropped them on their front lawns or in the parks where their kids play.
Good point, if I remember correctly one was upset about sidewalks in their neighborhood never mind discarded needles
I’m old enough to remember Bill Martin’s “2-for-Lowell” gimmick that was meant to put people into houses. Looks like Markley’s been paying him well to take people out. Times change.
The needle problem that motivated the motion to ban distribution within 1,000 feet of schools was in the South Common, which is over 1,000 away from the needle exchange program site. Meanwhile, the areas around the site , and the adjacent school, doesn’t have a comparable syringe problem.
This does not seem to be a problem for the proponents, which suggests a real lack of clarity in their thinking.