A Medford City Councilor has proposed a plan whereby Tufts would add $1.1 million to the city's revenues and help it overcome a budget crisis.
At a Council meeting on Tuesday, Councilman Michael Marks proposed that the University, which is tax-exempt, pay a $75 fee per semester for every student living in Medford. He presented a resolution for the city to begin discussions with the University, although the resolution was tabled.
The city cannot force Tufts to pay because it is a tax-exempt organization, but Marks hopes that the University can reach an agreement with Medford whereby the school would "pay its fair share."
Under Marks' plan, the University would pay $1,171,779. Marks considers the amount to be "a fair and accurate assessment" of what the University would pay if it was assessed by regular residential and corporate tax rates.
By "its fair share," Marks was referring to the municipal services Tufts uses every year, particularly the Police, the Fire Department, and public works.
Although it is difficult to measure Tufts' use of city resources, the amount is significant. Medford Police responded to 155 Tufts calls from 1999 to 2002, and the city's Fire Department responded to 355 calls. The fire department receives more calls because while the University has its own police force, there is no Tufts Fire Department.
Every time a fire alarm goes off in a University building, three engines and a ladder truck are sent to the scene. Marks proposed that a considerable portion of any funds received from Tufts go directly to the police and fire departments to compensate for the time they spend on Tufts calls.
The city also provides trash and snow removal to Tufts' off-campus properties.
In addition to facing costs incurred by Tufts, Marks is also concerned about recent budget cuts, which will put a strain on spending in Medford. Budget cuts ranging from $2 million to $4 million will affect the city starting in July, which he said will put the public safety of the community at jeopardy.
"We as residents are used to good services and over the last several weeks we have been faced with $1.4 million in cuts," Marks said. Without the help that payments from Tufts would offer, there may be a decline in services from the city, he said.
"We are in tough fiscal times and it is impossible to keep returning the burden to the loyal tax payers."
Medford residents must also cope with a more expensive housing market than they would without Tufts' presence, because students add to the demand for housing. Marks said that while students can share an apartment in groups of four or five and split a $2,500 monthly rent, Medford residents cannot afford such amounts.
With a land value of approximately $58 million, Tufts is the largest tax-exempt property owner in Medford. Marks used this figure when he came up with the $75 per student fee.
The proposed fee would apply to every student residing on the Medford portion of the campus, which is approximately half of all students living on campus, according to the council. The 416 students living off-campus in Medford, a figure based on Elections Department surveys, would also be taken into account.
The council's president, Robert Penta, agreed that "this is a good resolution" but warned against singling out Tufts among all tax-exempt properties in Medford.
Not everyone at the council meeting supported the proposal. Medford resident Reverend Eugene H. Adams, who is also a Tufts alumnus, sided with the University, saying that it would be a disgrace if the council let the issue sour relations between Tufts and Medford.
The city should be doing more to "capitalize on the leading industry in Medford" and the Council should "be careful in its approach," Adams said.
Some universities have had problems with surrounding communities over the issues of payments in lieu of taxes (PILOTs). Washington & Jefferson College, located 35 miles outside of Pittsburg, battled to defend its tax-exempt status for five years, the Chronicle of Higher Education recently reported. The college eventually won its battle against the city, but it now supports the surrounding community in other ways.
Other universities that pay PILOTs include Harvard, MIT and Boston University.
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