Rourke Bridge in bidding status

IT’S GAME. The request for proposal on the new Rourke Bridge is open until December 19 at 2 p.m

“That’s a big step in moving forward with that project,” Sen. Ed Kennedy said by phone Friday, referring to the bidding process.

It’s a project Kennedy has been working on since he was elected to his first seat in the Middlesex District in 2019. One of the first things he did was add $100 million for the bridge to the transportation bond bill. A bond is not an appropriation, but it gives the governor the authority to borrow money for a project.

“I initially asked for $70 million because that was the estimated cost of the bridge,” Kennedy said. “But by the time the legislation came through, I had to call up Ways and Means and say, ‘Can you increase that to $100 million?’ because the estimated cost of the bridge had increased so much in just a few months.”

The estimated cost of the bridge is now nearly $200 million, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and unforeseen increases in the supply chain.

In 2022, the state received $9.5 billion from the bipartisan infrastructure bill. Of the $1.1 billion in bridge funding, a portion will be used to replace the Rourke Bridge to close the funding gap.

Eleven potential design-builders have already submitted bids for the project, which will be vetted by the state’s Department of Transportation.

The project includes the realignment of Wood Street Extension and the proposed bridge will be constructed west of the existing location over the Merrimack River. The roadway will be widened so that two lanes, a sidewalk and a bicycle path can be created in each direction. The design recognizes all road users, from cars to cyclists and pedestrians.

But wait! There’s more, Kennedy said.

“There will be relief,” he said. “And should be ready in 2028.”

That timeline puts the bridge at the end of other exciting and large-scale projects happening in Lowell.

The Lowell High School reconstruction and renovation project expected to be completed in 2026.

And next year the Lowell Innovation Network Corridor is expected to inaugurate the first and second phases of the three-phase project, with a two-year timeframe for completion, putting it on track to contribute to Lowell’s riverfront skyline by 2027.

The $800 million development plan leverages the prestige and innovation of UMass Lowell and the resources and history of the City of Lowell with the job-creating potential of the industry to create a vibrant urban village/main street model and economic engine for the city to propose.

“LINC will probably have the biggest impact on the city since Wang first arrived,” Kennedy said.

Wang Laboratories founder An Wang built the Cross Point Towers starting in the 1980s at a cost of $60 million (nearly $250 million in today’s dollars), and the buildings were once the crown jewel of his computer empire. After the implosion of Wang Labs, the building passed through different hands and tenants. Kronos, now known as UKG, moved its headquarters to the campus at the Lowell Connector in 2018.

The new Rourke Bridge will open sometime in 2028.

“When it’s done, it’s going to be spectacular,” Kennedy said.

He’s talking specifically about the bridge, but Kennedy could just as easily be talking about one of these transformative projects.

Microphone drop: Nutter leaves WCAP

AFTER MORE than two years of getting up at 4 a.m., Gerry Nutter announced that Friday was his last day as host of the WCAP 980 AM Morning Show. Beginning November 4, Nutter will work for Kevin Coughlin at the MassHire Career Center.

“I will be working with companies to see what type of internship or part-time positions they have available,” Nutter said by text after his farewell party at the Market Street station. “I will then work with the school system and youth groups to find young people who can fill these positions.”

It’s a perfect transition for Nutter: In addition to a 14-year career in broadcasting, he previously served on the Lowell School Committee from 2018 to 2019.

Instead of talking to Lowellians six days a week and interviewing guests from the Greater Lowell area, discussing a range of municipal, educational and business issues, arts and entertainment, and the latest political and community news, he will use his communication and networking skills apply to matching interns with companies.

Giving people opportunities is what Nutter is good at. He launched the local radio career of this reporter, who is grateful for a year of “Big Fun Friday” chatfests, lots of laughter, bad karaoke, great music played by Cindy Annis in the sound booth, and friendships made around the world. Brew’d Awakening coffee enriched with a hint of Baileys Irish Cream.

Local boxing historianand former Golden Gloves champion Keith Rudy, regularly came into the studio to talk about boxing – and his other passion, horse racing – with Nutter and his listeners. He said the breadth of Nutter’s interest in the city and its residents, and his informed questioning of local leadership, kept him a loyal listener.

“Gerry is 100% a Lowellian,” Rudy said via text message on Friday. “He truly cares about his community and used his platform to hold local politicians accountable for their actions.”

The on-air chemistry was the reason retired state trooper Leslie Bodor, who was a volunteer co-host five days a week with former Morning Show host Teddy Panos, stayed on the Friday show when Nutter took over. Listeners know her for her law enforcement stories and infectious laugh.

“Teddy Panos, Gerry and I have that chemistry,” she said via text message Saturday morning. “It’s hard to find.”

Others are just as sad to see Nutter leave the local airwaves, including “Real Estate Ray” Boutin, who came into the studio every Thursday to talk about deals and give listeners real estate tips. The RE/MAX agent also brought a hearty breakfast from Cote’s Market on Salem Street in the Acre neighborhood.

“I am of course sad to see Gerry leave and at the same time happy for him,” Boutin said by text message on Saturday morning. “Gerry did a great job after that Teddy left. He brought in new guests from Lowell and surrounding communities. I loved listening to him interview guests. He will be missed.”

Nutter moved on from the former morning host Panos stoppedwhen he left the station after more than fifteen years to launch his multimedia venture WithinLowella website that combines digital news content with video, podcasts, blogs, event promotion and social media posts.

Panos said Nutter has an “open invitation” to continue being part of the local conversation at InsideLowell’s studios on Merrimack Street.

“Gerry has done a great job of keeping the Morning Show entertaining and relevant, and managed to do this often challenging circumstances,” Panos said by text message Saturday morning. “I will miss listening to him as I start my day and wish him the best in his next chapter.”

For now, Nutter plans to sleep in during the week as he prepares for his latest gig with MassHire.

“I have loved my time on The Morning Show for the past two-plus years and I am not leaving completely,” he said. “I’ll stay on Saturday Morning Live with Warren Shaw.”

Interview time for Billerica

For the first time in a long time, Billerica will sit through a series of interviews with city managers Monday night and choose a successor to former City Manager John Curran, who resigned this month chosen to take the top job in Tewksbury.

Curran, like his outgoing Tewksbury predecessor Richard Montuori, served in the role for 14 years, practically an eternity when it comes to government. Now the Billerica Select Board will choose from three candidates, all of whom have varying levels of experience at the top of municipal government.

The first interview is scheduled for Monday at 6 p.m. and will feature former Salem, New Hampshire Town Manager Christopher Dillon, who stepped out of the role last February after serving nearly seven years, and before that served as recreation director for 10 years . .

The next interview at 7pm will be Randy Robertson, a lesser known face in the area. According to Robertson’s LinkedIn page, he literally has the most extensive municipal management experience of the bunch. By broad, I mean geographically, as Robertson has previously served as city manager for cities in Delaware, Maryland, Alaska, Alabama, Tennessee, and Kentucky, chief of staff for the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, and chief of staff of the U.S. Army’s 2nd Signal Brigade in Mannheim, Germany from 2001 to 2005.

The least surprising name on the list of finalists is of course interim Billerica Town Manager Clancy Main, whose primary role before Curran’s departure was assistant town manager. Main’s name has been consistently put forward for the role, and the Select Board even took the step of recognizing that his past experiences in municipal government met the requirements for a city manager candidate. Before his three years as assistant city manager, Main served as director of administrative services for two years, as a management analyst for over a year and before that as executive assistant to the Littletown city manager.

The Select Board agenda includes an item to vote on the issue so Billerica can have its next city manager sooner rather than later. Whether they wait to think about it, their decision will still depend on contract negotiations with the chosen candidate afterwards.

This week’s column was prepared by reporters Melanie Gilbert in Lowell and Peter Currier in Billerica.