City Spotlight: From Digging Holes to Managing Dozens, Executive Director Paul Pires Has Done Many Jobs at the Lowell Regional Water Utility

LOWELL — Paul Pires went to work at the Lowell Regional Water Utility (LRWU) in 2007 installing water meters, and eventually moved up to a job as a water system maintenance person — digging holes and repairing the City’s aging water pipes. 

Years of hard work earned him a promotion to foreman, and then to Superintendent of Distribution, before he left the utility in 2022 to become the director of the North Chelmsford Water District — a position where he learned more about budgeting and leadership lessons that shovels and wrenches can’t teach. 

In 2025, he returned home as Executive Director of the utility where he worked for years. He now oversees 40 employees who maintain a system of about 215 miles of water pipes that carry up to 13 million gallons of water per day in summer months. 

He is already making an impact with leadership that empowers and trusts the workers who do the jobs that he used to do. 

“I think a good director is someone who can guide a team toward a goal, while still earning their respect,” Pires said. “For me, it’s less about being in charge and more about how I can support the workers, influence them, and help them achieve their goals and take pride in the work.”

Pires took the helm of the utility and immediately asked LRWU workers to begin doing larger and more complex jobs in-house, instead of relying on outside contractors.

That effort has already saved the City hundreds of thousands of dollars, and given a sense of pride to the workers who fix the pipes. 

In 2025, the City of Lowell spent over $850,000 on outside contractors who repaired major water main breaks. This year, LRWU work crews are repairing water main breaks themselves, and the City has spent just over $100,000 on outside contractors. 

Replacing aging fire hydrants costs about $20,000 per hydrant if the city uses outside contractors, but under Pires’ leadership, LRWU work crews have replaced 27 themselves over the past year, while also dealing with day-to-day operations.

Pires immigrated here from Portugal when he was 5 years old, grew up in Lowell, and lives in the city still. He is a proud father of three. 

He credits Chief Utility Officer Aaron Fox, Commissioner Paul St. Cyr, Assistant City Manager Shawn Machado and City Manager Thomas A. Golden for their ongoing support of both him and the LRWU workforce. Pires says that with their leadership and commitment, even bigger projects and accomplishments are on the horizon for the Utility.

“We’re building pride in the Utility and showing people we can do these jobs by working as a team,” Pires said. 

This is one of an ongoing series of profiles sharing the stories of the Lowell workers who keep the city running.