New Haven Board of Aldermen: Solve the 360 State Street Tax Problem
- by: Tilly Hatcher, Consultant to MEPT (Multi-Employer Property Trust)
- recipient: New Haven Board of Aldermen
360 State Street was conceived in partnership with the City of New Haven, and approved by the Board of Aldermen, in order to bring the revitalizing effect of a transit-oriented residential building to downtown. Completed in 2010, the building has attracted new residents and brought a much-needed grocery store to the area.
Thousands of workers in New Haven invested their retirement savings in 360 State Street through its owner, MEPT, which represents public employee and union pension funds. After the building was completed, the City of New Haven changed the game by assessing the building at four times the amount they projected before construction. This outrageous increase will hurt the working Americans whose retirement savings fund the building, and will also inhibit future development in New Haven.
Settling this tax dispute through court action could take years, costing taxpayer dollars and hampering prospects for further investment and job creation in the city. The Board of Aldermen is uniquely empowered to solve the problem in an expedient, transparent way—ensuring fairness, protecting the retirements of hard-working Americans, and restoring an atmosphere of trust in New Haven.
Dear Board of Aldermen,
Recently your colleague Alderman Doug Hausladen wrote to you, urging prompt action to address the 360 State Street tax problem. This building is being taxed at four times the rate of comparable properties — an arbitraryquadrupling of the 2007 projections that formed the basis for both the building’s owner and the Board of Aldermen to move forward with the project in the first place. Though the mayor fired the city assessor responsible for this reckless assessment, the assessment itself remains in place.
“As a matter of basic fairness,” Alderman Hausladen writes, “the City should not represent one rate as a ‘closely analyzed…fair estimate’ when a project is undertaken, then turn around and quadruple it. This is a signal for development that New Haven is not a predictable environment to invest money and bring jobs to our city.... We must resolve this issue as quickly as possible in a manner as fair for all parties as possible.... We all want to bring broad-based prosperity to the city while protecting the retirement funds of working people. Let’s rise to the occasion and do so.”
I agree with Alderman Hausladen and urge you, the Board of Aldermen, to exercise your power to fix the reckless tax assessment for 360 State Street. Settling this tax dispute through court action could take years, costing precious time and money while leaving the city in a cloud of uncertainty that will discourage investment and job creation. You, the Board of Aldermen, are uniquely situated to solve the problem in an expedient and transparent way — ensuring fairness, saving city resources, and restoring an atmosphere of trust that will safeguard the future of New Haven.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
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