Lowell officials are questioning the condition of the Merrimack Canal’s masonry walls as the city works to protect the $418 million Lowell High School renovation and rebuild from future water infiltration.
At a Thursday School Building Committee meeting, members focused on the canal’s deteriorated walls, which were exposed after the canal was drained when water infiltrated the construction site last year. Officials said the exposed masonry shows large gaps between stones, missing mortar, and concrete spalling and deterioration, all of which raised concerns about the canal’s ability to safely hold water when it is refilled.
Mayor Erik Gitschier urged the city to press for repairs first, arguing that it does not make sense to refill the canal and risk more damage. He also said the area should, at a minimum, be dredged.
Project leaders told the committee the construction team’s response has focused on drainage and waterproofing at the school site. Skanska Project Director Kevin Kane said a French drain has been designed along the entire western perimeter of the 1922 and 1892 Coburn Hall buildings, plus around the corner on the south end of Coburn Hall. He said the system includes waterproofing, a drainage pipe, drainage material, and a drainage board, and is about 75% to 80% installed. The $450,000 system drains to a manhole on French Street.
Still, the canal’s condition and any decision to refill it are outside the project team’s scope, Kane said. The overall project, designed by Perkins Eastman, is being built by Suffolk Construction and overseen by Skanska as the city’s owner’s project manager.
The canal is owned by Boott Hydropower LLC, and a 2021 ownership report states the company owns the canal’s floors and walls. Assistant City Manager Shawn Machado said he would consult the city’s Law Department and follow up on responsibility for repairs, including in the context of Boott Hydro’s ongoing Federal Energy Regulatory Commission license renewal.
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