Annual Event Showcases Downtown Lowell鈥檚 Offerings
Image by Tory Germann
09/18/2017
By David Perry
If there was anything students needed to know about downtown Lowell, Tom Lamond was there to help. At a pair of six-foot tables stocked with printed materials, Lamond was among folks from the city鈥檚 department of Planning and Development who welcomed students to the bounty of Mill City offerings awaiting them.
The university鈥檚 third annual 鈥淲elcome Back鈥� night drew students to Mill No. 5 for an evening of music, food and socializing. It was also a testament to the bond between the city and university, whose interests are inevitably intertwined.
鈥淚 knew this was a mill town, the first in the U.S.,鈥� said freshman mechanical engineering major Willie Medeiros, 鈥渂ut I didn鈥檛 know about this. It鈥檚 not your average place.鈥�
The mill鈥檚 retail stores, theater, market and coffee shop were open, and students enjoyed complimentary food offerings in the hallway.
Outside the mill, students entered to the rowdy, horn-driven funk of the Party Band, a Mill City staple born at the university. A drummer bashed away on a vintage kerosene can, and when they lit into 鈥淚鈥檒l Fly Away,鈥� trombonist Ed Goroza 鈥�18 was out front, whirling like a dervish.聽
Dozens of passers-by whipped out phones to record the performance.
Inside, Rowdy the River Hawk wandered the mill, high-fiving and posing for pictures. Hawkapella rendered vocals-only songs, including a cover of 鈥淛essie鈥檚 Girl,鈥� And two DifferenceMaker teams showed off their projects.
Andy Jacobson, owner of Brew鈥檇 Awakening and head of COOL (Cultural Organization of Lowell), guided students toward a slew of arts-related events over the coming months.
Steve Tello, 聽the university鈥檚 senior assistant vice chancellor for entrepreneurship and economic development, encouraged students to take advantage of the city鈥檚 rich arts and cultural resources.
Mayor Ed Kennedy said he hopes students will 鈥渢ake time to go downtown and see what the city has to offers, in terms of restaurants, shops and cultural events.鈥�
He specifically touted the Sept. 23 Kinetic Sculpture Race, which is in its second year.
鈥淟ast year, it brought 3,500 people to Lowell,鈥� said Kennedy. 鈥淭here are three times as many entrants this year, and we鈥檙e expecting a bigger crowd.鈥澛�
Lamond said the evening was a great way to get the students acquainted with what鈥檚 happening right downtown 鈥� and for the city to learn about the students. 鈥淲e鈥檙e here to promote the businesses in the city, as well as some of the events and partnerships we have with arts groups,鈥� said Lamond. He wanted students to know the city welcomes them: 鈥淭here are a lot of things available to them, such as Mill No. 5, which you might not expect to find in Lowell 鈥� a sort of hipster, cool place to go.鈥�
The collaboration on Welcome Back night is another example of the city and the university working together. In August, the two signed a historic master agreement that affirms cooperation on efforts from infrastructure improvements to snow removal and economic development.
Students appreciated discovering the nearby cultural and entertainment options available to them.
鈥淗aving a nice downtown definitely brings your education up to a higher standard,鈥� said Ethan Hyburg, a freshman computer science major. 鈥淵ou can鈥檛 go through college 鈥� your prime years 鈥� without enjoying life outside the classroom. You need other places to go too.鈥�
鈥淔or me, this is interesting,鈥� said Alhanouf Alhawiti, a chemical engineering major from Saudi Arabia. 鈥淚 like to go to discover a place by seeing its shops, the local ones, like these. It is how you see the culture.鈥�
鈥淵ou need to get away from just studying,鈥� said Vanessa Dallemand, a transfer student 聽from Dedham. 鈥淚f you鈥檙e going to make the best of your four years, you need to come up, destress and really put things into perspective.鈥�
