Mayor Michelle Wu kicked off a series of neighborhood town halls in West Roxbury Wednesday night, working to drum up residents’ support for her measure to soften the blow of a forthcoming residential property tax hike that has been stalled on Beacon Hill for months.
With time running out for state lawmakers to approve the measure, Wu appealed to residents to voice support for the legislation, which would temporarily shift more of the property tax burden onto commercial property owners, beyond what is currently allowed by state law, in order to prevent homeowners from experiencing a dramatic increase in their property tax bills. Wu has said the proposal is facing a deadline in just over a month, arguing it has to pass before the City Council approves both the residential exemption and tax rates in November, so tax bills can be finalized before they’re mailed out in early January.
Though she has not formally announced her reelection campaign, Wu has said she intends to run for a second term as Boston’s mayor next year. Should property taxes for homeowners increase substantially — Wu has projected that without a change, the average single-family home would see a 14 percent year-over-year hike — it could become a campaign issue.
Addressing a crowd of dozens of West Roxbury residents, as well as many union members and city staff, Wu and other officials gave a presentation to educate attendees on the background and implications of the policy, and asked people to tell their elected officials how a significant property tax spike would impact their lives.
“Please reach out to your senator, please reach out to all the Boston senators so they really understand this is a citywide issue. ... It always helps when people hear real stories,” Wu said, encouraging people to tell their friends and families to advocate for the policy to their senators even if they don’t represent Boston, “because every single senator is going to have a vote on this.”
Wu added that state Senator Mike Rush, whose district includes West Roxbury, has been working to push his colleagues to support the proposal.
Wu’s legislation seeks to temporarily mitigate the impact of Boston’s shifting real estate market on residential and commercial property taxes, which fund more than 70 percent of the city’s budget. Preliminary valuation data from the city found that high office vacancy rates post-pandemic have reduced commercial property values by an average of 7 percent, which lowers what the city would collect from commercial real estate in property taxes.
At the same time, residential property values have gone up by 4 percent, meaning homeowners would have to face higher property taxes to make up the difference, unless the city makes steep budget cuts and also does not collect the full amount of property taxes it’s allowed to by state law.
Instead, Wu is asking for approval to make that spike more gradual. Right now, commercial properties already pay a tax rate that is 2.5 times higher than the residential property tax rate. Wu is proposing to temporarily push that multiple closer to three times, before scaling it back to 2.5 over a few years, in order to ease the transition to residents paying higher property taxes.
West Roxbury resident Rachel Poliner said she came to Wednesday’s town hall to learn more about the proposal and walked away feeling appreciative Wu and her staff are making the effort to explain the complex policy to residents.
“It’s like the making the best of a difficult situation, the pandemic certainly is changing what cities and the buildings in cities do,” Poliner said, adding she felt like the measure is “well thought out.” “It feels like the choice is a super fast increase or a more gradual increase. So who wouldn’t take the gradual increase instead?”
Not all attendees were as convinced. Stephen Morris, also a West Roxbury resident, echoed concerns brought up by business groups and fiscal watchdogs about the proposal and pushed for the mayor to consider alternatives, like reducing the city’s budget growth.
“I find it hard to believe you can’t find anywhere for budget cuts,” Morris said. “We need to have some fiscal conservancy, all I hear is tax and spend, spend and tax.” Wu has previously said she does not find those options, in particular cutting the budget or using the reserves, to be viable or financially responsible for the city.
The City Council already approved her home rule petition in June. The measure also unexpectedly passed in the state House of Representatives in the final days of formal sessions after Wu agreed to various compromises in last-minute negotiations. But it’s remained in limbo in the upper chamber, where state senators appear far more hesitant to push it across the finish line.
Wu’s bill has faced fierce opposition from business and real estate groups who argue the measure would hurt small businesses, unfairly burden the already struggling commercial real estate industry, and exacerbate commercial property devaluations, threatening the city’s long-term financial stability.
Wu has recently said that without her measure in place, the average single-family home in Boston, worth $838,000 and benefiting from the maximum residential exception, would see a 14 percent year-over-year increase in property taxes, according to preliminary valuation data. That would amount to a $768 rise compared with what that home paid in property taxes in the 2024 fiscal year.
City officials have argued that would pose a dramatic shock to residents, who would likely face a 28 percent spike in their January property tax bill, compared with their bill from the previous quarter.
Niki Griswold can be reached at niki.griswold@globe.com. Follow her @nikigriswold.