Green for Lowell

By Amy Dain
July 9th, 2008

A few years ago the New Yorker ran an article on why NYC is the greenest city in the US. While people might think of Manhattan as island turned ecological nightmare, the article concludes that if NYC were granted statehood, it would rank 51st in per capita energy use. Eighty-two percent of Manhattan residents take public transit to work. They buy less stuff to fill their tiny apartments. They don’t maintain lawns. Etc.

While Massachusetts’ mill cities may evoke for you the dirty-air image of smoke stacks, like NYC, they are actually green engines for development. Lowell’s City Manager Bernie Lynch has a couple of entries on his blog this week that made me think of this.

Lynch notes that as fuel prices rise, Lowell is a good local destination for summer travel. The Lowell Folk Festival is in a few weeks. Lynch also comments that the high price of fuel puts Lowell in an enviable position - with its walkable downtown and public transit options. Here’s to suburbanites being green with envy for Lowell.