InsideLowell has learned that Chief Phillip Charron, who assumed the top spot in the Lowell Fire Department in September of 2020, has decided to call it a career this coming September.
Charron revealed the news in a brief email to the department Tuesday evening.
“Good Evening Everyone, I have decided after over 29 years of service in the fire department to retire,” the Chief’s email stated. “My last day will be September 26th, 2026. Thank you.”
Charron was named to the post by then City Manager Eileen Donoghue on September 16, 2020.
Donoghue and a search committee had originally tabbed Arlington Chief, James Bailey, to lead the city’s firefighters in August of that year, but Bailey withdrew from the process after protests from within Lowell FD over the hiring of an outside candidate.
Chief Charron was unavailable for comment on this story.
4 responses to “Lowell Fire Chief Charron Retiring in September”
I dont think its accurate to say that “he decided to call it a career”
I want to begin by stating that once again, I have never met Manager Golden nor Fire Chief Charron.
If in fact Chief Charron has decided to retire, well that is just very sad news because by all accounts, the Chief has had 3 decades of pristine public service! It is also deeply concerning that this departure comes right on the heels of intense political finger-pointing over a $4 million overtime deficit. He is a navy veteran who worked himself up through the ranks at the Lowell Fire Dept. This is not a good time or the right path to take because the city needs public safety stability and continuity, just like with city and school management!
Lowell’s Fire Department is one of the largest in Massachusetts. Given all that has happened recently with the extreme fires, serious financial stresses, staffing, etc. operational stability is a necessity. I really hope it’s not because of the $4 million overtime deficit, because the reality is its contractual rules and the Chief can’t wave a magic wand and make it all go away! Chief Charron’s leadership is exactly what the fire department needs, now more than ever!
Councilor Dan Rourke pointed out at the June 16,2026 Lowell City Council Mtg. that the City Manager Tom Golden explained several months ago, 110 firefighters use little overtime, 45 are out a moderate amount of time, and that 30 use every minute of sick time they earn. Rourke said he favors “a full fiscal audit” of the system if that’s what councilors want”.
Councilor Dan Rourke is absolutely correct. It’s the only fair and legal way, plus it establishes and meets the “just cause” threshold required in labor law. Because unsubstantiated accusations will give the IAFF Local 853 union the ability to successfully argue that the city is engaging in a “witch hunt” or “anti-union rhetoric”. A forensic audit shows definitive spreadsheets proving a reciprocal “swap” pattern and gives the city the proof and the “just cause” which translates to legal leverage. But it’s only the first step in a two-step process. The city must also use these very specific legal tools called the “Garrity Hearing” or the “Kalkines Warning” which are and act as very legal safeguards that order the firefighter to answer to the data. If they refuse, they can be legally terminated for insubordination.
Another important reason a “full fiscal audit” is the fairest way to go is because it protects the vast majority of honest firefighters in the department. Remember, Councilor Rourke noted that “110 firefighters use little to no overtime or sick leave”. So, this audit will just isolate the small 30 high sick time users and protect those who don’t and that are doing their jobs honestly and ethically.
Also, only after a “full fiscal audit” can the city effectively address its staffing issues. Councilor Corey Robinson is correct and accurate about increasing the number of firefighters, but doing so on the local tax base burdens Lowell with massive, lifelong benefits. With the “full fiscal audit” Lowell can get a federal FEMA SAFER Grant.
FEMA funding covers 100% of new firefighter salaries and benefits for three full years, “bringing an estimated $4 million to $5 million in direct relief” to Lowell. However, “federal peer-review panels composed of national fire chiefs” routinely reject cities that try to use grant money to “mask internal shift manipulation”. That’s why Lowell must “audit” to restore “systemic integrity”, only then they will be able to get access millions in free federal personnel grants.
But they better hurry, because the current federal funding cycle is closing on June 22, 2026, so the City Council must act on Councilor Rourke’s audit motion immediately.