Boston City Councilor Julia Mejia is calling on Mayor Michelle Wu to provide an updated financial overview of the taxpayer-funded portion of the White Stadium rehabilitation project. Mejia plans to present a resolution at the City Council meeting scheduled for December 13, 2023, emphasizing the need for transparency regarding the costs associated with the redevelopment, which aims to accommodate a new professional soccer team.
In her proposed resolution, Mejia highlights the city’s pressing fiscal challenges, including a capped property tax levy, declining commercial property values, and rising fixed costs. These factors, she argues, necessitate accurate cost estimates before committing substantial public funds to the project. The councilor’s resolution states, “Boston faces significant fiscal pressures… which limit the city’s flexibility and heighten the need for accurate cost estimates.”
During her reelection campaign, Wu committed to disclosing the anticipated costs of the project, estimated at around $200 million, by the end of the year. However, the city has yet to release a definitive price tag. The mayor’s office responded to Mejia’s request with a partial update on December 9, noting that the city’s expenditures thus far include $12 million on demolition and construction, with an additional $76 million in subcontracts awarded.
Community Concerns and Project Delays
The White Stadium project, in collaboration with Boston Unity Soccer Partners, has seen costs double since its initial announcement. Wu acknowledged that expenses could increase further due to federal tariffs affecting construction materials, particularly steel. The last disclosed estimate, which emerged late last year, suggested that taxpayer costs could reach $91 million—a significant increase from the initial projection of $50 million.
In June, former mayoral candidate Josh Kraft revealed an internal city document predicting that costs could soar as high as $172 million. Wu characterized this figure as a “worst-case scenario,” but has refrained from providing updated cost estimates since then. The project is intended to transform White Stadium into a facility for both the new professional women’s soccer team, Boston Legacy FC, and for student-athletes from Boston Public Schools.
Mejia asserts that the city must enhance transparency regarding spending on the stadium project to “enable meaningful oversight” from the City Council. She has expressed concerns about delays in public records requests related to internal cost analyses, which she argues restrict access to critical information necessary for assessing the city’s financial exposure.
Legal Challenges and Alternative Proposals
Community opposition to the project has emerged, with groups like the Franklin Park Defenders and Emerald Necklace Conservancy filing a lawsuit aimed at halting the initiative. These groups argue for an alternative rehabilitation plan focused solely on high school athletes, which they claim could be executed at a fraction of the cost, approximately $64.6 million.
Mejia is set to hold a press conference at City Hall on December 13, prior to the Council meeting, to address these community concerns alongside opponents of the White Stadium project. The council is also expected to discuss tax rates in light of proposed legislation that would allow the city to adjust its commercial tax rates to alleviate residential tax burdens, amidst a projected 13% tax increase for single-family homeowners next year.
As the City Council prepares to vote on tax rates, the pressure is mounting for Mayor Wu to clarify the financial implications of the White Stadium project. The outcome of these deliberations will likely influence both the project’s future and the city’s fiscal strategy moving forward.
