The Column: Community fund started for Lowell flood victims

A WAVE of water tore people from their homes; a wave of hope and help seeks to rebuild those lives.

On Friday, the Greater Lowell Community Foundation established the Moody Street Flood Relief Fund to support residents displaced by the post-Thanksgiving flood in The Acre neighborhood caused by a devastating water main break on Father Morissette Boulevard on Nov. 28.

“As we have done for the past 25 years, GLCF supports our neighbors,” President and CEO Jay Linnehan said. “We are grateful and fortunate that so many stepped up to help those in need.”

Established in 1997, the GLCF is a philanthropic organization comprised of more than 400 funds dedicated to improving the quality of life in 21 neighboring cities and towns. It has financial assets of more than $55 million, of which $35 million flows to the Greater Lowell community.

The Moody Street Fund will provide targeted relief to flood-impacted residents. Although there were no reports of physical injury, more than 200 people, mostly low-income seniors and people with disabilities, were evacuated from their units at City View Towers and relocated to area hotels.

For a scale of the disaster, a 12-inch pipe like the one that failed can move nearly 5,000 gallons of water per minute. When burst, that water explodes to the surface and flows along a path of the least resistance. Several homes on Race Street and the basement of City View Towers, which is owned and managed by the Lowell Housing Authority, were flooded.

The hourslong deluge knocked mechanical and electrical building services offline for the foreseeable future, and swept away peoples’ immediate sense of security and place. They were separated from their units, pets, household belongings, daily routine and community.

According to Linnehan, 40 different people representing nonprofits from all over the city met to align services such as transportation, food, personal items and clothing for the residents. Participants included School Committee members, state representatives, city leadership, a representative from U.S. Rep. Lori Trahan’s office, as well as dozens of local nonprofits, city departments and community groups.

“We will work very closely with the LHA, to find out who needs what,” said Linnehan, who also noted that the fund will be managed without any administrative overhead costs.

“This will be money in and money out,” he said.

Coalition for a Better Acre’s offices are just around the corner from the flood zone, and Executive Director Yun-Ju Choi said the needs exceed the resources of the LHA and the Race Street homeowners.

“This is what needs to be done,” she said on Friday. “Relocating families is not easy. Relocating five families is difficult, neverminded almost 200.”

In the wake of the disaster, she noted that the dislocated population will require ongoing support.

“It’s not just about this first week,” she said. “It’s about the long-term depending on how long it’s going to take for them to be able to get back home. It’s time for us to come together and just try to help LHA any way we can.”

In an email to his staff last Tuesday, LHA Assistant Executive Director/Chief Operating Officer Adam Garvey complimented the work of his team, first responders and city departments, but acknowledged the hard road ahead with repairing the building’s damaged infrastructure.

“Our staff and city departments performed admirably in a very difficult situation,” he wrote. “The building is out of commission, and we are meeting with our facilities team for an initial assessment. I do not have timeframes at this point. This is a very unfortunate and uncomfortable event for our residents, but they are safe, and we will be doing everything we can to get them home and ensure they are as comfortable as possible during the restoration.”

Choi said it was a stressful week, but her spirits were strengthened by the wraparound care and love she felt from the community for the flood victims.

“My heart was really full with how we are all coming together to help our partner organization in Lowell,” Choi said. “Seeing what kind of city we are and how we all work together, especially during these tough times.”

To learn more about how to access the fund, contact the Lowell Housing Authority at 978-364-5311.

To donate to the Greater Lowell Community Foundation’s Moody Street Flood Relief Fund, visit glcfoundation.info/3Fkg0rs.

Trahan, Moulton react to new House leadership

AFTER THE Nov. 8 midterm elections, Republicans now have control of the U.S. House of Representatives, winning nine seats and shifting the power of the legislative branch.

With that comes new Democratic leadership, and the now-minority party made history Wednesday by choosing U.S. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-New York, to take Nancy Pelosi’s role as the Democratic leader of the House. Jeffries, who is the Democratic Caucus Chairman this term, will be the first Black congressperson to lead either of the two parties in Congress starting Jan. 3.

Pelosi, D-California, was the first woman named speaker of the House.

U.S. Rep. Peter Aguilar, D-California, will succeed Jeffries as Democratic Caucus chair. He is the former vice chair of the caucus.

But one local leader will also get the spotlight.

U.S. Rep. Katherine Clark, a Democrat representing Massachusetts’ 5th Congressional District, will serve as minority whip, having previously served as assistant speaker.

U.S. Rep. Lori Trahan, of Massachusetts’ 3rd Congressional District, expressed her positive thoughts on the leadership selection, writing in a statement that it “is proof that the Democratic Caucus is listening to the American people.”

As the Democrats and other representatives look to the next congressional term, Trahan wrote that they’ll now look toward their priorities for the next two years.

“We must act with urgency to lower costs and expand opportunities for working families, to ensure that every person who calls our nation home can live with the dignity they deserve, and to rebuild our nation – both physically and economically,” Trahan wrote.

Republicans have a 221-213 majority in the House, meaning Democrats hold “a narrow minority,” Trahan wrote. Now that they no longer have full control of the House and Senate, Trahan wrote it’s important to “protect the tremendous progress” she and her colleagues have made.

Trahan said she also has respect for Pelosi, Majority Whip James Clyburn and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer and what they’ve accomplished.

“As we turn our attention to the new Congress, I remain deeply grateful to Speaker Pelosi, Leader Hoyer, and Whip Clyburn who have stewarded many of the boldest and most transformative legislation passed into law in generations,” Trahan wrote. “The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the CHIPS and Science Act, the Inflation Reduction Act, the PACT Act, the American Rescue Plan, and so many other new laws are putting Americans in a position to build a better life for their families and win the 21st century. We owe them a tremendous debt of thanks as they pass the baton to our new leaders.”

Trahan will start her third term in Congress next year after defending her seat from Republican and former Massachusetts senator Dean Tran.

U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton, a Salem Democrat representing the 6th Congressional District, had similar thoughts on the new Democrat leaders in the House. Clark’s district directly abuts his, and Moulton said she is part of the next wave of the Democratic party.

“We have the most diverse leadership team in our history and a chance to move our party and our country into the future,” Moulton said. “Katherine Clark’s rise to leadership is a great opportunity for Massachusetts, and I look forward to working alongside her to bring our entire party into the future.”

This signals a new drive and direction for Democrats, who should be willing and ready to address the pressing problems of today, Moulton said.

“Democrats need to show that we can tackle emerging issues that traditionally we’ve been too afraid to take on, like big tech regulation, immigration, China and Taiwan, inflation,” Moulton said. “Everyone knows we’ll work on climate change. Everyone knows we’ll work on education, but if we want to be the majority party to lead America, we’ve got to tackle these difficult, contentious issues as well.”

This group of leaders-elect is younger than the current one — Pelosi is 30 years older than Jeffries, and Clyburn is 23 years Clark’s senior — and Moulton said it’s time for change.

“I think everyone’s ready for a generational change,” he said, “and that’s a good thing for our party and for our country.”

This week’s Column was prepared by reporters Melanie Gilbert in Lowell and Cameron Morsberger on Democratic leadership.