For those who haven’t noticed, we have a new bakery right across the street tucked in between Athenian Corner and Warp & Weft. Pizzelle has a delicious-sounding menu of goodies and the Lowell Sun gave them an enthusiastic write-up last weekend. I encourage everyone to check them out!

Winterfest is this Friday and Saturday. Parking will be banned on Middle, Palmer, & Shattuck streets from 10am Friday through Saturday evening. Expect those streets to be closed to traffic entirely once the festival starts at 6:00pm Friday.

For anyone fascinated by Canal Place history, a pdf of some of the complex’s original marketing materials is available. This marketing folder turned up in old office records and I have to assume it was from very early on, before the first developer went bankrupt and the complex was sold off in pieces, and before things got bad enough for the units to go for far less than the prices mentioned.

If you took advantage of the free parking at the Hamilton garage during the snow emergency, you have until 8:00pm to move your vehicle before charges begin to accrue.

The city has declared a snow emergency beginning at 3:00 with a parking ban beginning at midnight. Please move your car out of the surface lot before then for plowing. There is free parking for residents at the Hamilton garage off Dutton but NOT at the Leo Roy. Any car left in the surface lot risks being towed.

Lobby office hours this weekend are Sunday 3:00 to 5:00 (later than originally planned). Sorry for any inconvenience.

Georgi has some like-new washer hoses she’s giving away (see below). Call her if you can use them: 978-764-5570.

A reminder: If you park in the surface lot, it’s your responsibility to know when the city declares a parking ban and to move your car to the Hamilton garage. Don’t assume no news is good news or you may get towed!

The city has declared the parking ban over as of 4:00 this afternoon. Any cars remaining in the Hamilton garage after 6:00pm will incur charges.

A snow emergency has been declared beginning at 4:00pm this afternoon. A parking ban starts six hours later at 10:00pm. If you park your car in the surface lot, you must move it by then to allow for plowing or you risk being towed. Free parking is available at the Hamilton garage off Dutton St (behind Canal Place 3) beginning at 2:00pm. Parking at the Leo Roy garage is NOT free and will not be reimbursed.

There is no official snow emergency today, which means no free garage parking. Nonetheless, if you can get your car out of the surface lot and allow the plow to do a better job clearing it, we all benefit. Be aware that the Association will NOT reimburse parking charges.

There’s another storm predicted for the weekend. It is the responsibility of surface lot parkers to know if a parking ban has been declared. Don’t count on an announcement from management. Cars left in the surface lot during a snow emergency are subject to towing. You can sign up for city notifications via the LPD CodeRed system.

Lobby office hours for next week have been bumped a day. The office will be closed Wednesday the 12th and open Thursday the 13th from 6:30pm to 8:00 pm instead. It will be closed Saturday the 15th and open the afternoon of Sunday the 16th from 1:00pm to 3:00pm. Please forgive any inconvenience.

Someone found some keys on the 6th floor today. If you think they might be yours, please let me know and I’ll do my best to see they get back to you.

See below for a question from a resident that I wouldn’t mind an answer to myself. One consideration she doesn’t mention is whether any of the paint could be old enough to contain lead, particularly in the beam crevices. Please share any thoughts or advice in the comments. And thanks in advance!

Does anyone have suggestions on how to remove old paint from the wood beams? Mine have a lot of white paint marks from previous owners, including areas where it looks like they got ceiling paint on the beam, tried to wipe it off, and just ended up leaving a white smear (example photos attached). I haven’t been brave enough to try fixing this for fear of making the issue worse, but we’re repainting our walls and I’d love to get the beams looking better, too. Also not sure if folks ever apply some sort of wood conditioner or oil to the beams, or if it’s best to leave them in their raw unfinished state? 

I tried looking up resources for maintaining antique pine heart wood, but everything I found online was about flooring and trim. Nothing on gigantic structural beams with a rough surface!