Better Know a District
How well do you know the 18th Middlesex District in MA? Outside of when it comes time to vote, you probably don't think much about it. Amusingly, at one time or another, each of the candidates misspoke about these invisible boundary lines (present company included, and I'm not calling out either of the other's errors... pobody's nerfect). Here are five (5) interesting Quirks of the 18th Middlesex District:
It came up during the City Life debate... does the District include part of Chelmsford. The answer is NO, but there's a really good reason for the confusion. In Ward 8 Precinct 3, there is a small area of Lowell that is cutoff from the rest of the City by U.S. Route 3. That Westlands neighborhood is only accessible by driving through Chelmsford (unless of course one has a flying machine to get their directly).
When we say that the District represents the people of the Acre and Highlands neighborhoods, it's important to pay close attention to the semantics. It's about the people who live in our district since those are the ones who vote. A curious anomaly is Ward 1 Precinct 1A which is actually in Pawtucketville (that's right, on the north side of the Merrimack River but not in the 16th Middlesex District). Most of this tiny area hugs the river's edge, and the one block with actual buildings on it is part of the UMass Lowell North Campus. Those include the Alumni Hall, Manning School of Business, and the Pulichino Tong Business Center. It's important for our State Representative to have a good relationship with both the University as well as those who work in the District, but there's a reason why Voters are unlikely to see much canvassing from candidates in this area.
Does the District include part of Downtown? Yes, a little bit, and we should all be better about using inclusive language for these residents (rather than thinking of them as an extension of the Acre). In Ward 4 Precinct 3 we have the block bounded by Kirk Street and Lucy Larcom Park (by the High School and St. Anne's Episcopal Church), as well as some multifamily residential buildings alongside the Merrimack River. I typically consider anything north of Dutton Street and/or the Merrimack Canal as part of the Acre, but have seen neighborhood maps that blur the boundary in this area.
The 18th Middlesex District includes "most," not all, of the Highlands neighborhood. We do not include a sizeable part of Ward 5 Precinct 1, Ward 6 Precincts 3 and 4A, and Ward 8 Precinct 4A. Those are part of the 17th Middlesex District.
Depending on whose version of a Neighborhood Map one prefers, there is a feasible argument that part of the 18th Middlesex District includes a sliver of the Sacred Heart (or South Lowell) neighborhood. The boundary between Ward 5 Precincts 1A (18th Middlesex) and 1 (17th Middlesex) isn't actually the Lowell Connector, it's the adjoining River Meadow Brook. That means we include the Lowell Connector Trail. Green space is good, but no voters to be found in this interstitial space between Districts. Think of this in the same way as my notes for No. 2; it's part of the District, but we aren't technically representing any People that live there. Sorry Mr. Lorax, I'm all for speaking for the trees, but the parameter's of a State Rep's Office are representing the Voters of the District.
Whether you are a Mail-In Ballot Voter, an Early Voter, or a Primary Day Voter (3 September 2024), I want you to Cast Your Vote with Confidence. Please VOTE.
