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Harvard in the City

Boston City Hall
City Politics

Amid Uncertainties for Boston PILOT, Harvard Fails To Fulfill Payment for 13th Year

Harvard failed to fully make its requested Payment in Lieu of Taxes payment for the 13th year in a row last year, according to City of Boston data released last week.

City Manager Yi-An Huang
Harvard in the City

With Harvard’s Funding Under Threat, City Manager Says Cambridge Is Ready To Wait Out the Storm

For nearly a century, Cambridge has asked Harvard to increase its Payment in Lieu of Taxes — never questioning whether its most powerful tenant would be able to pay. But as the Trump administration threatens the University’s federal funding, Cambridge City Manager Yi-An Huang ’05 said the city recognizes that times are changing.

Patriot’s Day 2025
Harvard in the City

Cambridge Joins 250th Celebrations of Lexington and Concord on Patriots’ Day

The City of Cambridge celebrated Patriots’ Day with a reenactment of William Dawes’s 1775 horseback ride on its 250th anniversary, celebrating the nation’s founding while reflecting on current turmoil in Washington.

Harvard Yard
City Politics

City Leaders Increase Pressure on Harvard To Reject Trump With New Petition

Harvard’s leadership is used to handling demands from its faculty and students. But with the Trump administration’s latest threats, the University is feeling pressure from its hometown, too.

Kennedy-Longfellow School
Harvard in the City

‘A Nice Send-Off Concert:’ HRO Performs For Students, Teachers At K-Lo

This year, the Harvard-Radcliffe Orchestra has performed orchestral masterpieces, from Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 11 to excerpts from Gustav Holst’s “The Planets.” Now, the ensemble can add the viral Russian meme song “Sigma Sigma Boy” to their repertoire.

Allston Construction
Harvard in the City

Allston Residents, Elected Officials Ask for More Benefits from Harvard’s 10-Year Plan

As Harvard finalizes its Institutional Master Plan in Allston, residents and elected officials called on the University to fulfill its previous promises and increase contributions to the Boston neighborhood.

Boston City Hall 1
City Politics

Advocates Raise Concerns As Boston PILOT Report Remains Unreleased

While property taxes comprise nearly three quarters of Boston’s revenue, nonprofits are exempt from paying this tax. Instead, the PILOT program asks large non-profits to voluntarily pay a portion of what they would have otherwise paid in property taxes. The 2024 report on contributions has yet to be released.

Allston ERC Construction
Harvard in the City

Harvard Nears Construction Milestones in Allston Amid Development Boom

Harvard is soon to bring hundreds of new housing units online in Allston as the University approaches several major construction milestones in its long-running expansion across the river.

Cambridge City Hall Participatory Budgeting
City Politics

‘A Complicated Marriage’: Cambridge Calls on Harvard to Increase Optional PILOT Payments

The city of Cambridge called on Harvard to increase their optional municipal payments at a city council meeting Monday night — after failing to reach a new agreement with the University by the end-of-year deadline.

Aerial View of Cambridge City Hall
Harvard in the City

Harvard, Cambridge Fail To Reach New PILOT Agreement by End-of-Year Deadline

Harvard and the city of Cambridge have missed their end-of-year deadline for renegotiating Harvard’s Payment in Lieu of Taxes program, which replaces a portion of the property taxes that the University is otherwise exempt from paying.

Harriet Jacobs House
City Politics

The Fight to Preserve Harriet Jacobs’ Legacy in Cambridge

A historical preservation committee wants to maintain the home of a formerly enslaved woman as a memorial and museum. The owner wants to build a boutique hotel. It’s a tenuous marriage.

Allston Construction
Harvard in the City

Harvard Files 10-Year Master Plan for Allston, Kicking Off Next Phase of Negotiations

Harvard filed its 2025-2035 Institutional Master Plan for its Allston campus on Tuesday, officially marking the next phase of negotiations with Boston officials over the University’s planned decade of development.

Cambridge Half Marathon + 5K
Harvard in the City

Cambridge Half Marathon + 5K

Arnold Arboretum Renaming
City Politics

Harvard Arnold Arboretum Renames Bussey Street to Flora Way in Honor of Enslaved Woman

Harvard’s Arnold Arboretum formally renamed Bussey Street — named after a merchant whose wealth came from slave-produced goods — to Flora Way at an unveiling ceremony Saturday.

Boston City Hall 2
City Politics

Boston to Overhaul Development Review Process

Boston is one step closer to making a major overhaul of its long-maligned development review process after Mayor Michelle Wu ’07 unveiled a draft modernization plan last week.

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