Keep Westford Affordable
Affordability is not just about fixed income and senior residents. It effects working families as well. A 2024 report in SmartAsset estimates that for a family of 4 (2 working parents and 2 children) in Massachusetts, an income of $301,184 is needed to live comfortably. That is the highest in the nation.
Housing cost is a major factor in affordability. How can we work to keep Westford Affordable?
The MBTA Zoning is a missed opportunity to address the cost of housing. It is not too late to fix it. What is the problem and could we fix it?
Housing affordability is not solved by building high density housing all owned by a single entity and rented out at market rates (which is what MBTA Zoning encourages). Housing affordability is helped by encouraging high density developments to be sold as condos. A garden style condo can be purchased in nearby Chelmsford or Acton with a monthly payment often less than the monthly rental cost in the current Westford developments. As a benefit, as values and rental rates increase, an owner keeps their costs flat (with a fixed rate mortgage), and benefits long term from that price appreciation.
The current MBTA Zoning bylaw does not, and cannot, encourage any particular type of ownership. However, if we were to re-draw the MBTA Zoning to the state minimum, and place it in a location unlikely to be built, we could then enter into negotiation with builders who wish to build elsewhere, and obtain concessions to sell a minimum % of units as condos.
Affordability is also affected by real estate taxes, which I discuss in the next section.
Avoid Future Prop 2 ½ Overrides
The annual increase in real estate taxes is limited in Massachusetts by Prop 2 1/2, which was enacted in the early 1980's through a citizen's petition. It puts significant pressure on local governments, as the only way to increase taxes more than 2 1/2% per year is to get the approval of a majority of voters. As you recall, Westford attempted that "Override" as they are called, last year. That failed by 12 points, 56% No vs 44% Yes.
There are multiple means by which the town can implement level-service cost savings, while also increasing fairness of how taxes are assessed. I will champion smart, cost-effective decisions that maintain service levels without overburdening taxpayers. This includes exploring initiatives such as switching to in-house busing, considering pre-owned vehicles for town services, exploring options to regionalize things like dispatch, implement sharing between departments of infrequently used resources, and encouraging multiple options for capital requests to ensure we're making the most efficient choices for our community
How can we better assess taxes fairly?
Did you know that the assessed value of the Bell apartments is only 80% of what it sold for in Dec 2020? How many single family homes sold at the end of 2020 are assessed at only 80% of the sale price from 4 years ago?
What might level-service cost savings look like? Here are examples:
1. Move to in-house busing for the schools rather than continue to contract that out. Cost-savings estimates range from $150,000 to $500,000 per year.
2. Source less expensive options to replace town vehicles. For example, this year the Fire Department is requesting $1,385,000 to replace a backup rescue pumper. The town could consider purchasing pre-owned for significant savings. As an example, a 2020 rescue pumper from the southwest in very good condition can be purchased for $400,000, or less than 1/3 the cost of new. Isn't that what people do in their private lives, if they need to replace a vehicle but the cost of brand-new vehicle is too steep? They buy pre-owned, and let the first owner take the depreciation hit. As a town, we can let other towns take the depreciation hit on vehicles and equipment.
These are just two examples of how the town could maintain current service levels but at lower cost.
Rebuild Our Commercial Base
Our commercial base is important to rebuild. Why? Because residential properties alone cannot support all of the town services that we have. We rely on commercial properties to in essence subsidize our residents. This is common in our comparable towns. Comparable towns generally have 85% of the taxes paid by residents, and 15% paid by commercial. As the % of taxes paid by residents increases above that 85%, it becomes more and more difficult to maintain services without increasing taxes.
So how is Westford doing? Not good. Several years ago, Westford was at 86% residential taxes. Every year that has increased, and is now at 90% (almost 91%) Yikes! We are further about to convert some of our commercial property into residential property (the MBTA Zoning) which will further out this balance out-of-whack.
We could modify the MBTA Zoning to ensure that developments are mixed-use, which would help correct this balance error.
What else can Westford do? We have nearly empty office buildings at both ends of Littleton Rd. We are also very conveniently right off a major highway. Further, we are right on the edges of a huge biotech industry. We should consider rezoning Tech Park East to allow for pharmaceutical/biotech manufacturing. If we did, it could bring not only increased tax revenue, but also well paying jobs.
Bring Diversity of Thought to Our Boards and Committees
Why is diversity of thought important? Simply put, no one person has all the answers. Any group of people that start from the same set of viewpoints and experiences is unlikely to find the best solution to any problem.
How many issues have the town boards voted on in recent years, sometimes unanimously, only to have the issue rejected at Town Meeting?
Diversity of thought will lead to boards and committees asking the tough questions and exploring lower cost options to meet objectives. Can we meet the needs of the soccer field at Nutting for less than $2,000,000? Are there options to provide the Highway Dept with a bucket truck for less than $250,000? Can we find a recently built school where we could buy existing architectural plans instead of spending $900,000 for a custom design? $50,000 here, $200,000 there, and soon enough the town will find that there is enough money to go around. But we will never get there if the people on these boards and committees do not ask those questions and explore lower cost options.
Provide our schools with the resources needed to be the best they can be.
Some people may wonder why the schools are # 5 in this priority list. It seems counterintuitive from someone still with kids in the school system. Here's why:
It is the School Committee that sets priorities and policy for the school district. The Superintendent answers to them. A primary role of the Select Board with respect to the schools is to provide the School Committee with the financial resources needed to fulfill their mission.
By focusing first on the other priorities, more funds will become available for the School Committee to meet their needs.
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Smart spending, maintaining level-service for less money.
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Smart commercial growth, attracting biotech and other businesses to fill our empty commercial real estate.
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Smart residential growth, adjusting zoning to give the town leverage and encourage ownership models rather than rentals.