There Was a Bat
Honest to God. A bat. Full-blown chaos for about 20 minutes. I think I saw grown men pushing down elderly women and children.
Setting aside the bat (reluctantly), the main attraction was the Public Hearing on a 360 day moratorium on:
“any new construction and development within the City of Lowell, MASSACHUSETTS, of “Data Centers”, as defined above. Said moratorium prohibits acceptance by the City of Lowell of any new applications and permits for zoning permissions and decisions for the intended purpose of the development and operation of a Data Center.” [emphasis added].
The usual crowd of South Lowell residents turned out in favor of the moratorium, many of whom have been living with Markley as a neighbor since roughly 2015. Their message was familiar: the relationship hasn’t worked, and Markley has been tone-deaf to their concerns.
For its side, in the past, Markley relied on lawyers and public relations consultants to carry its message. Last night, the company tried a new approach and sent its own employees to speak on its behalf.
Repeatedly, speakers suggested (sometimes subtly, sometimes directly) that a moratorium could or would cost them their jobs. The implication was that a vote for the moratorium would be a vote to put people out of work. However, nobody on the Markley side ever explained exactly why that would be.
Councilor Descoteaux cut straight to the heart of the issue and asked the obvious question directly: would 80 employees actually lose their jobs if the city adopted a moratorium? A representative from Markley was unwilling to state on the record that this would be the case.
This exchange revealed something important. The job-loss narrative wasn’t really about facts. It was about framing. As this argument was, it seems, not credible, it undermined the carefully coordinated Markley narrative. In addition, Markley reps decided to present a slide show highlighting the improvements made to the property over the last decade. Here again, I was left scratching my head. The photos largely highlighted what was going on behind the walls of the Markley compound.
That is not the issue at hand. The issue is the interaction between the business and the neighborhood. I doubt anyone looking to tap the brakes on Markley expansion cares about what art hangs on the wall behind cubicles or what color mulch they use. This is telling. It seems Markley is somehow still focused on how things look from inside the compound, while the neighborhood is focused on how the facility feels from the outside.
[Lobby is on point. What’s your problem, South Lowell?]
In the end, our irreparably fractured council supported the moratorium 10–0, with Councilor Rourke abstaining (he serves as part of a youth football organization that Markley donated to). That margin tells you something. When a body that’s allegedly divided lines up that decisively, it’s a clear sign of where the center of political gravity sits.
As to a path forward, Councilor Robinson noted that the ball is in Markley’s court. If the company wants the moratorium lifted, they can come to the table and work out a real agreement with the neighborhood. This is critical. The press strategies, lobbying efforts, and messaging campaigns have failed.
Sometimes it takes a bat flying through the room to make everyone stop mid-sentence and look around. The moratorium might be exactly that kind of moment.
Stay tuned, fanatics.
3 responses to “Government Was Happening: March 10, 2026”
First, the pics were to show the difference between what the area was before and after Markley.
Second, in Tech you’re either growing or dying. Pausing expansion for a year is dying (at least in that location)
Third, no management is going to make statements regarding job loss while the union is in the room. But if you’re not expanding why would you need staff at the same level as when you were?
Bottom line, I agree with the neighbors, Markley hadn’t been necessarily a good neighbor. This may all be an act. But people in that neighborhood also work there. How many Lowell residents are the city council willing to gamble their jobs on? 10 people losing jobs is ok? 5? 20?
Pausing for a year is unnecessary, especially since the city could just not approve expansion while negotiating with Markley on terms
So, if they sit down together and reach a well-defined agreement about how they get along, they can revisit the moratorium and end it – right? This is what negotiations are for when they actually work. Though to work, as my experience negotiating labor agreements has taught me, the parties need to want to make things work. Time will tell.
Mr. Forrant, you are ABSOLUTELY SPOT ON!