Mayor defends Assembly Square development, revenue shortage
By George P. Hassett

     Tax revenue from the mall at Assembly Square is half of what it was projected to be and construction of a new Main St. is not expected to begin on time. But Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone this week said his plan for the re-development of Assembly Square remains on the right track and is moving forward at an exciting pace.
     The area designated as home to the ‚Äúnew Main Street‚Äù is owned by Federal Realty Investment Trust and is expected to include retail, residential, and office space to begin the area‚Äôs transition into a new neighborhood.  James G. Kostaras, director of housing and community development, said this week that Federal Realty is unlikely to meet its Jan. 1 construction deadline on the new neighborhood.
     The delay in the Main St. construction runs in opposition to how the mayor‚Äôs plan  was sold to the Board of Aldermen in April of 2004, said Alderman-At-Large Denise Provost at a Feb. 8 housing and community development sub-committee meeting.

   ‚ÄúWe have retail and big signage at Assembly Square now. We were promised a speedy development if we made certain concessions at the front, but we are not even getting that. I‚Äôm not seeing dense developments, or new jobs. All I see is retail,‚Äù said Provost.
   Curtatone said the delay was a minor one and is due, mainly, to bureaucratic processes. If developers were to delay construction, he said, the city would not hesitate to exercise its right to take back the parcels of land already sold to Federal. But, he said, Federal has exhibited a commitment to developing Assembly Square.
    ‚ÄúNobody is dragging their feet. Federal Realty is merely following all the requirements of the {Massachusetts Environmental Protection Agency} and paying the necessary permit fees. We are satisfied with their commitment to move forward on building a new Main St.,‚Äù he said.
     A March 2004 report prepared by the Office of Housing and Community Development projected the Assembly Square mall would bring in $1.1 million in revenue. But a January city assessor‚Äôs report stated the mall generated only $531,575.73 in tax revenue last year.
    ‚ÄúMany of our citizens have an idea of what the mall is going to generate in tax dollars that is far different from the reality of the situation,‚Äù said Alderman-At-Large William A. White at the Feb. 8 committee meeting.
     Curtatone said the numbers were deceiving and could be attributed to the time period in which the calculations took place.
     ‚ÄúWhen you do a fiscal analysis, it all depends on what is in the ground June 30th. Last June 30th all we had at Assembly Square was a gutted out building. The revenue estimates are on the conservative side. More tax dollars will be coming into Assembly Square,‚Äù he said.
      Curtatone said there is a potential for hotel use on the waterfront and that American Multi-Cinema Theatres, which recently bought Loews has decided to keep its Assembly Square theatre open, despite closing may others, including its Fresh Pond branch.
     ‚ÄúBusinesses understand and recognize what we are doing and the exciting opportunities we are creating,‚Äù he said.
      Curtatone also touted a proposed land swap between Ikea, a Swedish home furniture retailer, and Federal Realty.
      Under the plan, Federal Realty would build apartments, condominiums, office space and ground floor retail space on the prime waterfront land Ikea now owns. Ikea would move behind Home Depot and Circuit City and closer to nearby Interstate 93.
      Assembly Square is a 145 acre district surrounded by Interstate 93, rail tracks and the Mystic River. It is closer to downtown Boston than many parts of Boston itself but has long been underutilized as a home to low-rise strip malls, vacant properties and industrial sites.
     Curtatone said smart development of Assembly Square is the key to unlock Somerville‚Äôs potential for jobs, housing and commercial revenue.
     ‚ÄúAssembly Square development is not about the mall, it is about building an urban village where people can live, work and play,‚Äù he said.