Lowell Veterans Commission Eyes City Council Vote to Revive Stalled Memorial Square Program

LOWELL — December 10, 2025 — Lowell Veterans Commission hears that a stalled approval process has blocked new memorial square designations citywide. Eric Lamar, the city's director of veteran services, told the December 10 meeting that the veterans council responsible under a 2006 bylaw for screening new memorial square applications may have dissolved, leaving at least one pending application unapproved and requiring a City Council vote to transfer that authority to the commission. Ted Serinski, newly appointed director of military and veteran services at UMass Lowell and a co-founder of the university's student veterans organization, told the commission his office now works with more than 1,000 military-connected students annually, including over 250 Massachusetts National Guard members who receive a 100 percent state tuition waiver. The commission also announced it has roughly 15 winter supply buckets — containing jackets, socks, and gloves — available immediately through the police department, with the hero banner program open through a March 15 deadline and a Memorial Day ceremony planned for Veterans Park on Douglas Road.