Boston, MA
Boston tax shift effectively dead in the Senate, little time left before bills go out
Boston’s proposal to shift the burden of its property taxes away from homeowners is effectively dead in the Legislature.
Senate President Karen Spilka, D-Middlesex/Norfolk, said in a statement Monday night that she did not intend to bring the home rule petition back to the floor when the Senate reconvenes on Thursday.
With days left for the city to finalize its property tax rates before January bills go out, this means city officials will not have time to rethink and resubmit a new proposal.
“Many in the Senate believe that this proposal tips the scales too far in one direction, with a stalled economic recovery in Boston as an unfortunate potential outcome,” Spilka said.
“My job as Senate President is to work toward compromise, always; without it we would accomplish nothing. It is also my job to listen to the members of the Senate, and I have heard clearly that there currently is not sufficient support for this proposal,” she continued.
Mayor Michelle Wu unveiled the original tax shift proposal in April in response to declining commercial property values in the wake of the pandemic, as fewer people traveled to the office for work.
To avoid homeowners having to make up for that loss on their taxes, she proposed requesting a higher percentage of the tax levy from commercial owners.
Wu wrote in a letter to senators last week that residential property owners would see about a 10.4% increase on their next tax bill, or a 5.2% annual increase, if the home rule petition is passed. Without it, they would see an estimated 21% hike, or a 10.5% annual increase.
The original home rule petition passed the state House of Representatives but stalled in the Senate, largely due to concerns from the business and real estate communities that it would hurt commercial property owners at a time when they were already struggling.
Wu met with business groups to draft a second, compromise version of the bill, which passed the City Council in October and the House last month.
She pressed for the bill to be put on a fast track for approval so tax rates could be finalized on time, saying in November that it would need to pass by Dec. 4.
But last week, Sen. Nick Collins, D-1st Suffolk, delayed the Senate vote twice, saying Dec. 2 that he wanted to first see the certified tax valuations.
After those numbers were released publicly, he again delayed the vote on Dec. 5, saying he wanted more time for analysis of the numbers.
Collins and others in the Senate and in the business community claimed the Department of Revenue-certified valuations showed that Wu’s initial estimates of the increase in homeowners’ tax bills were overblown.
Even some of the business groups who had worked on the second, compromise bill backed out at the end of last week, saying the tax shift was unnecessary.
On Monday, Collins pushed the Senate vote a third time, repeating the argument that the bill was not needed.
“Estimates by city officials have been far off the mark,” he said, MassLive previously reported.. “We believe it is fair and prudent to allow the time to digest that data and speak to our constituents, stakeholders and colleagues to determine whether this home-rule is necessary.”
Wu has pushed back on these arguments, saying in her letter to senators last week that the average annual tax increase for a single-family home over the past decade has been about 5%, less than half of the estimate for 2025.
But opponents, including Spilka, said the change could hurt the economic viability of the whole state, not just Boston.
The Senate president said in her statement Monday that while senators were aware of affordability issues and the concerns of homeowners, they had helped pass other legislation to help address those challenges, including the $5.1 billion housing bond bill signed into law in August and a major tax relief package that went into effect on Jan. 1, 2024.
Before Spilka declared her intention not to bring up the bill again Monday night, a city spokesperson released a short statement saying they were “waiting for clarity” on whether it would be brought to a vote.
The city did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday morning.
Boston, MA
MBTA Green Line trains out from Kenmore to Boston College on B branch through April 30
The Green Line B branch trains will not run between Kenmore and Boston College through April 30, according to the MBTA.
The nine-day outage will allow T officials to work on several infrastructure improvements and maintenance, the installation of Green Line Train Protection System (GLTPS) infrastructure, replacement of 130-year-old wooden overhead catenary wire “trough” near the Green Line portals and more.
The MBTA announced free, accessible shuttle buses between the two stops, Kenmore and Boston College during the outage. The buses will not stop at Griggs Street, Allston Street, and Packard’s Corner due to “accessibility issues,” T officials said.
During the weekend of April 25 and 26, the outage will extend through Copley, and shuttle buses will skip Griggs Street, Allston Street, and Packard’s Corner during the same weekend.
Throughout the shutdown all Green Line frequency will be reduced between Copley and Government center.
The MBTA urged riders to use the Orange Line at Back Bay during the outage. The agency also noted riders can transfer to Copley from Back Bay, an approximately five-minute walk.
The route 57 bus will also be free from April 22 through 24 and April 27 through 30 for alternate service between Kenmore and Packard’s Corner, the MBTA stated. During the April 25 and 26 weekend, the T noted the bus will not be a good alternate with not Green Line service at Kenmore.
During the shutdown, riders taking shuttle buses should budget extra travel time, the T said.
“For example, a rider travelling to Park Street from Boston College should budget at least an additional 10 minutes of travel in additional to their regular commute,” the MBTA stated.
More information is available on-site through transit ambassadors and T staff, virtually through T-Alerts or following the MBTA on X @MBTA, or via the mbta.com/GreenLine.
Boston, MA
Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe flex in Boston: Takeaways from Celtics-76ers Game 2
Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe combined for 59 points, and the Philadelphia 76ers looked like a completely different team against the Boston Celtics in Game 2.
And unlike Game 1, the Sixers’ defense also showed up, holding Boston to 43 second-half points and 39 percent shooting for the game in a 111-97 road win to tie this Eastern Conference first-round series at 1-1.
Edgecombe scored a team-high 30 points on 12-for-20 shooting, and Maxey added 29 points and nine assists. The Sixers’ backcourt duo combined to shoot 11-for-22 from 3-point range. The Sixers were 19-for-39 from 3 after going 4 of 23 from that distance in Game 1.
Boston was led by Jaylen Brown’s game-high 36 points, but Jayson Tatum was the only other Celtics player who scored in double figures with 19. Boston shot 13-for-50 from 3-point range.
Here are some takeaways with Game 3 set for Friday in Philadelphia.
Celtics offense falls flat
The Celtics knew to expect a different effort from the 76ers.
One adjustment from Philadelphia likely didn’t take Boston by surprise. After taking just 23 3-pointers in Game 1, the 76ers sought out more long balls in Game 2.
Maxey called his own number more often. Edgecombe was aggressive from the start. As a team, the 76ers played with more freedom, firing plenty of shots that they might have turned down in the series opener. Philadelphia made plenty of those looks while shooting 48.7 percent from behind the arc.
Still, the Celtics would have been all right if they had played their usual offensive game. Instead, their offense was their biggest issue. They shot just 39.3 percent on field goal attempts. They missed 37 of 50 3-point attempts. They committed an atypical 13 turnovers.
Trying to come back in the fourth quarter, they had too many empty offensive possessions. Jaylen Brown got blocked while trying to beat the shot clock buzzer and picked up an offensive foul while hitting Maxey in the face. Jayson Tatum missed a contested pull-up 3-pointer early in the shot clock on one possession and threw away a pass on another. Derrick White was left wide open in the left corner but couldn’t find the bottom of the net. The 76ers left the door open early in the fourth quarter by missing several shots, including a couple of layups, but the Celtics couldn’t fully capitalize. Eventually, Maxey sank a series of baskets to create more separation for Philadelphia, and the Celtics largely went away down the stretch. — Jay King, Celtics beat writer
Sixers bounce back in Boston
This is the way the 76ers have to play if they want to extend this series as far as possible.
Maxey and Edgecombe have to dominate their guard matchups, which is exactly what they did in Tuesday night’s Game 2. Paul George needs to be a deterrent to Celtics stars Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum. He doesn’t have to eclipse them, because that would be difficult. But he does have to give them a bit of pause. Most of all, the 76ers have to play the focused brand of basketball they exhibited in Game 2 rather than the sloppy and slapstick kind of hoops they played in Game 1.
The Celtics are such a good team that the above equates to near-perfect basketball. But that’s the task the Sixers are facing, particularly without star center Joel Embiid. On Tuesday night, this was a team up to the task. They were focused. They executed on both ends of the floor. They got much better play from their role players. Maxey and Edgecombe were absolutely dominant.
Overall, on both ends of the floor, this is the best game the 76ers have played in months. And they got it at just the right time. Now we have a 1-1 series heading back to Philadelphia. — Tony Jones, Sixers beat writer
Boston, MA
Former Massachusetts doctor faces 81 new sexual assault charges
A former doctor at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston has been indicted on 81 new sexual assault charges, prosecutors announced Tuesday. Dr. Derrick Todd, a rheumatologist, was already facing rape and assault charges in Middlesex County and had been sued by dozens of former patients.
Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden said the new charges stem from accusations made by 22 victims between 17 and 56 years old. Todd faces 21 new rape charges, 59 new counts of indecent assault and battery and one count of assault with intent to rape.
“Many of these women had complicated and gravely serious symptoms and conditions. Some were in excruciating pain. Many were desperate for relief,” Hayden said. “Dr. Todd intently groomed them all into quiet submission.”
With the latest indictments, Todd is now facing more than 100 charges of sexual assault in Massachusetts.
“Almost unimaginable”
The alleged assaults occurred between 2017 and 2023 at Brigham and Women’s Hale Building in Boston and the Faulkner Hospital in Jamaica Plain. Hayden said it’s “almost unimaginable” how Todd was able to violate and betray patients’ trust.
“The scale of victimization and the magnitude of trauma left in the wake of these allegations is something we have never encountered,” Hayden said.
WBZ-TV has reached out to Todd’s lawyer for comment. He could be arraigned in court on the new charges this week, Hayden said.
Charges against Dr. Derrick Todd
Brigham and Women’s fired Todd in 2023 following accusations that he performed inappropriate pelvic and breast exams on his patients. The I-Team reported at the time that police were investigating more than a dozen complaints of sex assault against Todd by his female patients.
In January of 2025, Todd pleaded not guilty in Middlesex Superior Court to rape charges involving two of his former patients at Charles River Medical Associates in Framingham.
Last month, Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan said a grand jury indicted Todd on three new charges of rape and 17 counts of indecent assault and battery.
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