WORCESTER—A report from Worcester’s Department of Economic Development earned praise from the city council Tuesday night for its use of tax programs and its commitment to local jobs and diversity.
The reports, delivered by Chief Development Officer Peter Dunn, included updates on Tax Increment Financing (TIF) and Tax Increment Exemption (TIE) programs, as well as the department’s transparency initiatives.
“It’s really well done. There is a lot of information there that I’ve been sharing with residents,” Councilor Etel Haxhiaj said, adding that she wants to ensure Dunn and his staff have the resources to continue work on workforce diversity and local hiring.
“You’re also monitoring contractors and sub-contractors,” Haxhiaj said, citing the past removal of two contractors that failed to comply with requirements. She asked for more details on program compliance, including citations, fines and explanations of contractor terminations.
“Adding this additional information … will benefit the city, the taxpayers, and will keep informing them on how we’re protecting their interest,” she said.
Councilor Candy Mero-Carlson thanked Dunn for putting Worcester residents to work across 13 projects. Those projects created 911 full-time jobs and retained 362, with 723 filled by Worcester residents.
“We’ve worked with all of the trades, to make sure that people in Worcester are working,” Mero-Carlson said.
Councilor Khrystian King also praised diversity efforts but noted low participation by women and, in some cases, local hires in the project snapshots provided.
Dunn said some goals have not yet been reached because they are “aggressive goals,” but he expects improvement as the city provides more guidance to contractors.
“We established these goals to be just that—where we want to be, not minimum thresholds or quotas,” Dunn said, pointing to programs like Building Pathways that aim to remove barriers and expand participation.
Mayor Joe Petty praised the housing section of the report.
“It gives a good perspective on what we’ve done, and sometimes that gets lost,” Petty said.
Since 2015, more than 1,400 affordable housing units have been created or preserved, with another 1,600 in the pipeline. Seventy-two are ADA accessible. The city has invested $25.7 million through Housing Division programs, leveraging $380 million in other investments. Since 2020, 10 new housing programs have also been launched.
“We’re trying to build all types of housing here in Worcester,” Petty said.
City Manager Eric Batista called housing “a major crisis” but said Worcester is making significant progress.
“To put it in perspective, we’ve had 25,000 people come into the city in the last ten years. We haven’t built 25,000 units,” Batista said. “We’re building affordable units, we’re building home-ownership, we’re building permanent supportive housing. You name it, this department is achieving it.”
Steve Smith, a veteran reporter with 17 years at The Hartford Courant, now brings his passion for photojournalism to Worcester. An award-winning photographer, he has covered major events like U.S. soccer, pro football, and UConn basketball. He is also the official photographer for the Miss Massachusetts competition and works as a realtor. Contact him at steve@stevephotographysmith.com
