Boston Mayor Steps Up JP Morgan Assistance

[IMGCAP(1)]BOSTON-Fighting to keep a global financial services firm inside city limits, Mayor Thomas Menino is unveiling a multi-faceted incentive program and calling on the Boston Redevelopment Authority and city council to back his initiative. Menino estimates that the effort could ultimately lead to more than 1,100 jobs for the city.

“Financial services companies represent a $24-billion industry in Boston,” Menino says in a prepared statement. “…and I have made it a priority that we focus on ways to strengthen and grow this sector of our economy.” The mayor plans to use tax increment financing and other relief that will assist JP Morgan as the firm’s lease at 73 Tremont St. comes to an end. That lease expiration prompted JP Morgan to pursue potential relocations out of the city, supposedly with a concentration on the South Shore, in a strategy that was advancing steadily before the group abruptly altered course and began negotiating a move to Seaport Center in the city’s Seaport District. JP Morgan’s change of heart was first reported by GlobeSt.com.

[IMGCAP(2)]Although an agreement is not yet in place for Seaport Center, Menino spokesperson Jessica Shumaker tells GlobeSt.com that the mayor wanted to get his incentive package moving to help demonstrate the city’s support for JP Morgan. The BRA board gave its blessing yesterday afternoon, and Menino is now urging the Boston City Council to deliver its needed approval as well. Whether the backing will be there remains unclear, but the concept did get a boost from Boston’s top property assessor, Ron Rakow. Not only would JP Morgan’s occupancy at Seaport Center alleviate a big piece of vacancy, Rakow says it “will send a strong message to others that the waterfront neighborhood is a prime location for further expansion of the financial services industry in Boston.”