Mayor Michelle Wu is sharing details about her proposal to balance Boston’s budget and the need to shore up decreasing revenue from commercial property taxes.
Wu’s proposal involves a three-year tax increase for commercial properties. She says this is an alternative to increasing residential property taxes.
“If our residents were to have a sudden shock or increase in housing costs, that would be incredibly disruptive,” Wu said.
Evan Horowitz, leader of Tuft University’s Center for State Policy Analysis (CPA), says the popularity of work-from-home has weakened commercial property values.
“Basically, every office building is less valuable than it used to be, which means it generates less tax revenue for the city,” Horowitz said.
The City of Boston has relied heavily on property taxes to fund the city in recent years.
“Boston is more reliant on tax from commercial buildings, office buildings, particularly than any other [major] city in the country,” …