Hamilton Canal District - Lowell, MA

Lowell, MA Lowell city manager Kevin Murphy has made available the release of a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for the development of parcels within the Hamilton Canal District.

The district is a 15-acre redevelopment site located at the gateway to the city’s downtown. The Hamilton Canal District is among the best opportunities in the commonwealth to achieve a transit-oriented, waterfront development in the city.  The district can serve as a model for smart-growth development strategies that will create quality multi-unit housing, transform the commercial real estate market in a Gateway City, and support innovation and entrepreneurship clusters. 

The Hamilton Canal District, a collection of 17 separate parcels, will transform the primary gateway into the city by doubling the size of downtown with a new, urban site that will connect the transportation hub at the Gallagher Terminal and Lowell Connector with the core downtown, the Arts District, and the major event venues. This new development will further strengthen the residential and commercial markets, expand the city’s employment base, and attract new residents to the city. Finally, led by a design and development team, the Hamilton Canal District will incorporate signature architecture and urban design to complement Lowell’s historic built environment. The city is seeking a master developer, or a small group of developers with significant and complimentary plans, to take on the 15-acres of vacant and underutilized land and develop up to 2 million s/f of new, mixed-use development.

“I am extremely excited about the release of the RFQ. It is the culmination of many months of hard work by city staff to get the redevelopment of the Hamilton Canal District jumpstarted,” said Murphy. 

The city is seeking to build on successful projects in the district including the Appleton Mills artist housing, the University of Mass. Lowell’s Innovation Hub for early-stage entrepreneurs in the 110 Canal building, and the state’s pending courthouse, a $175 million project. The city is soliciting qualifications from interested development firms or groups to purchase the 12 available parcels. The city seeks a partner or partners that share the excitement about this development opportunity and desire to jumpstart the next phase of development. The available development parcels are fully entitled and require no discretionary permits.

“The significance of getting the Hamilton Canal District back on track cannot be underestimated. This development represents great opportunity to create jobs, added revenue and new developments to a blighted area.   An aggressive construction timeline is incorporated into the RFQ, with the goal of getting shovels in the ground sooner rather than later; no more time for talking, it’s time for action,” said mayor Rodney Elliott.

The city will be accepting qualifications packages for the project until October 13, 2015 at noon EST. The Request for Qualifications is available online at www.hamiltoncanal.com. Upon review of the applicants, city officials will narrow the selection process to 3-5 finalists by the end of October. These candidates will be invited to submit more comprehensive proposals due in December. The city plans to select and announce the final candidate by the end of the calendar year.