Worcester Business Journal

8 Worcester Business Journal | November 13, 2017 | wbjournal.com With the election of Yvonne Spicer, the newly created city is preparing for an economic boom BY EMILY MICUCCI Worcester Business Journal Staff Writer I n January, Framingham will no longer lay claim to its longstand- ing, unofficial status as America's largest town, after voters narrow- ly made Framingham a city back in April. But with nearly 70,000 people, the state's newest city has a lot to gain on the economic development front by trading its former town meeting form of govern- ment led by a Board of Selectmen, for a city government led by a strong mayor. "A stronger executive voice, with a more streamlined legislative body, has the potential to implement change," said Robert Halpin, Framingham's outgoing town manager who has managed the city, implementing policy changes to make Framingham more business friendly, for more than five years. Halpin will continue working for the city as an adviser to the newly elected mayor, Yvonne Spicer, a former public school teacher and administrator and current executive at the Museum of Science in Boston, who was elected Nov. 7 in the city's first mayoral elec- tion, coinciding with the election of 11 city council members. Advantages, disadvantages With a Mass Pike location and easy proximity to Boston, commuter rail access, and cultural diversity, Framingham has the right ingredients to be a thriving city. But when it comes to economic development, Framingham has often been overlooked or written off as unfriendly toward new business. Framingham is home to some major corporate tenants, but when its biggest, TJX Cos., wanted to expand its head- quarters in 2012, it looked first to the City of Marlborough to grow before agreeing expand its Framingham foot- print as well under a 20-year, $2.25-million tax-increment-financing deal. And while other corporate ten- ants, like Sanofi Genzyme, have worked well with city officials to permit expan- sion projects, the perception that build- ing in Framingham is difficult persists. The city's dual tax rate imposing high- er taxes on commercial property owners than residential owners is another hin- drance, and one that will be difficult to solve given the size of the delta: Residents pay $16.71 per thousand valu- ation, while commercial owners pay $36.52. Meanwhile, three blighted plazas have sat mostly vacant for years, as pro- posals to redevelopment them have failed to get any traction. A symbol of leadership Proponents of a city form of govern- ment, like Halpin, believe having a mayoral figurehead in office is an important missing link to generating enthusiasm from prospective business- es, and for getting residents on board Worcester 185,000 N Framingham** 68,000 Y Leominster 41,000 Y Fitchburg 40,000 Y Marlborough 39,000 Y Gardner 20,000 Y Central Massachusetts cities Framingham will be Central Massachusetts' second-largest city on Jan. 1 when the new form of government is effective. Here are the the region's cities, ranked by size. Whether the city has a strong-mayor form of government, with a mayor serving as the chief execu- tive, is also indicated. All Central Massachusetts cities have strong-mayor governments, except Worcester, which employs a council-manager government. In Worcester's case, the mayor is an elected member of the city council but a city manager holds the executive powers. Population* Strong mayor? *Based on 2010 U.S. Census data, figures are rounded **City form of government effective Jan. 1, 2018 Sources: Mass.gov; U.S. Census; the cities Framingham has been trying to revitalize its downtown near town hall, but that and other economic development projects have been slowed by the difficulties of the former town meeting form of government. P H O T O S / E D D C O T E Framingham's Strong Mayor

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