In February, Mayor Martin Walsh announced the official increase of linkage fees by 42%. Now, for any commercial development over 100,000 square feet in Boston, $15.39 per square foot will be collected as linkage fees, of which $13.00 will contribute to supporting affordable housing and $2.39 will go towards workforce development programs in the city.
Originally created in 1986, the Boston Linkage Program was established to leverage funding for the community from large-scale commercial real-estate development. For years, the linkage rate remained at $10.81 per square foot, of which $9.03 is dedicated to affordable housing and $1.78 goes towards workforce development. Originally, the Boston Planning and Development Agency was only allowed to adjust linkage every three years based on inflation, but the rate was unchanged for several years.
After seven years of advocacy exacerbated by the challenging economic climate due to the COVID-19 pandemic, linkage has finally been increased. “Before the passage of the legislation, the city could increase linkage to CPI which is the consumer price index, without permission from the state, but they didn’t do that all the years that they could have done it,” said Amy Nishman, representing the Job Training Alliance. Nishman said, “We’re far behind where we could have been even if they had just been doing the thing that they were already allowed.”
Beginning with advocacy, the City conducted a Nexus study to assess the situation before the ask was forwarded to the City Council. After a unanimous agreement to increase linkage, the resolution was passed to the mayor, to create a Home Rule Petition. This petition requested the state to allow Boston to adjust the linkage fees. After the mayor signed the petition, the State House finally passed it, allowing Boston to increase linkage to the newest rate.
This increase contributes to maintaining balance among the city’s communities. Nishman said, “We recognize that when big development comes in. There are a stream of people who follow that, who make housing unaffordable, and often the jobs are not accessible to all income brackets.”
One of the major issues for those in the low-income bracket is affordable housing, which has been exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic. Karen Chen, representing the Coalition for Truly Affordable Boston, said, “In the city of Boston, more than 50% of the people pay more than 50% of the income towards rent. And with COVID, sometimes it’s 70 or 80% that goes towards rent.”
Also the Executive Director of the Chinese Progressive Association, Chen said, “In Chinatown especially, a lot of people are squeezed into smaller apartments. We have actually seen in one of the apartments in Chinatown, a three bedroom apartment, [wherein] more than a dozen people live there. Basically one family shares one bedroom, because of the drastic increase in rent, but also because there isn’t enough affordable housing.”
The linkage money for affordable housing is administered by the Neighborhood Housing Trust through the Department of Neighborhood Development (DND). Boston’s DND is “responsible for housing the homeless, developing affordable housing, and managing the City’s real estate.” The linkage money will go towards approved developments of affordable housing units.
“But if you don’t give them self empowerment to then support themselves, they may not be able to keep that cheap housing,” said Edward Hsieh, COO of the Asian American Civic Association (AACA). On the workforce development and job training front, the linkage money is administered through the Neighborhood Jobs Trust (NJT). The NJT is one of the many sources of funding for job training services and programs for low-income individuals in the City of Boston.
Nishman, also the SVP of the Jewish Vocational Service, said, “Linkage is this amazing tool to try to be an equalizer, to try to level the playing field. Effective job training can move low-income Boston residents up the economic ladder.”
Both of these aspects are important ways in which linkage money can help the economy recover from COVID-19. While this fee increase has great implications for both affordable housing and workforce development, this is only the first step. As Nishman said, “We hope to collaborate with the city to come up with an increase in linkage that can work for both the development community and help the residents of the city of Boston have more options for affordable homes, and more options for job training.”
