Lowell OKs 2 subdivisions amid data center pushback

Planning Board · Meeting of September 24, 2026

LOWELL — The Lowell Planning Board approved definitive subdivisions at 90 Bolt Street and 2 Tanner Street despite residents' fears the lot splits pave the way for more Markley Group data center growth. Chair Thomas Linnehan and the board voted 5-0 on each subdivision, layering in conditions on stormwater permits, private road maintenance and, for the Silresim-adjacent Tanner Street site, compliance with MassDEP and EPA environmental requirements. Resident Emily Gertenbach said she can already "hear the existing data center at times, even half a mile away," while Harini Ayer pressed the board on whether the city's data center moratorium was being circumvented.

Linnehan responded that "the law department has told me three times the moratorium is not going to affect them" because both applicants filed preliminary plans before it took effect. The board also approved removing two trees at Saint Louis Park for a $2.5 million playground expansion, continued a 675 Andover Street special permit to November 2, and adopted its 2027 meeting schedule.

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Source: the Planning Board meeting of September 24, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.