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Speaker 1: It's Night Side with Dan Ray on WBS Boston's news radio.

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Speaker 2: Well, there's some interesting developments in Cambridge. And I don't

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Speaker 2: want to suggest that what's going on in Cambridge is

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Speaker 2: the canary in the coal mine or the coal shaft,

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Speaker 2: but I think they might be. We are in a

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Speaker 2: situation here in Massachusetts where a lot of federal programs

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Speaker 2: are being cut, which is going to put increased pressure

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Speaker 2: on communities across Massachusetts. Massachusetts is not the favorite state

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Speaker 2: of the current administration. I think most of us realize that.

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Speaker 2: And there's all who are still in the middle now

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Speaker 2: going into the fourth week of the government shutdown, which, again,

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Speaker 2: without getting into who's at fault or whatever, that is

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Speaker 2: not good news for Massachusetts or communities in Massachusetts. And

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Speaker 2: Cambridge is starting to feel a problem of financial problems

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Speaker 2: and an article by Spencer Buell in The Boston Globe

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Speaker 2: Today talked about the irony of the beautiful weekend of

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Speaker 2: the Charles regard of the head of the Charles, where

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Speaker 2: local coffee shops you know, he writes, at local coffee

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Speaker 2: shops line stretched up the sidewalk, restaurants were packed, hotels booked.

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Speaker 2: Business was good, but storm clouds were approaching, and the

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Speaker 2: City Council on Monday night voted to raise the city's

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Speaker 2: commercial property tax rate by This is the words of

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Speaker 2: Spencer Buell of The Globe Staff by a STARTLINGK twenty two,

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Speaker 2: A move that will hit many smaller business is hard

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Speaker 2: and put new pressures pressure on a wealthy system city

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Speaker 2: accustomed to boom times to rethink either its generous spending

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Speaker 2: or who it asked to pay for it. I think

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Speaker 2: that that does really encapsulate the problem, and that problem

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Speaker 2: has landed at the door of a lot of people

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Speaker 2: in Cambridge, including my gune Carrie Coolsher. She's the owner

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Speaker 2: of Grendel's Den. I think everybody is familiar with Grendel's

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Speaker 2: Den and the c hag To, two locations in Cambridge

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Speaker 2: that have been very successful over the years. Carrie, this

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Speaker 2: this has to have hit you hard and other business

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Speaker 2: owners in Cambridge. You know, I'd like to hope you're

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Speaker 2: going to say, well, no, Dan, that's not true, but

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Speaker 2: I know it is true. What's the feeling in the

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Speaker 2: business community and again the small business community in Cambridge?

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Speaker 3: Hi, Dan, thank you so much for having me on,

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Speaker 3: and you know, it really is kind of a thing.

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Speaker 3: Where as you were mentioning, we are busily helping guests

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Speaker 3: who are flocking to our area for things like the

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Speaker 3: head of the Charles and the fall season, and it's

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Speaker 3: very busy right now. So this all arrived upon our

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Speaker 3: doorsteps when we're very very busy people as small business

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Speaker 3: owner as we just don't you know, we don't have

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Speaker 3: as a team that just sits thereh track's legislation and taxes.

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Speaker 3: We're running our businesses, so we actually don't really have

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Speaker 3: had We haven't really had time to understand what the

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Speaker 3: impact of this is going to be, and many of

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Speaker 3: us aren't going to know until we get a bill

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Speaker 3: from our landlord next year. So what we are seeing

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Speaker 3: is a really big number and we are already operating

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Speaker 3: as the margins, and so we are very concerned that

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Speaker 3: this is going to pass through to all of the

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Speaker 3: small businesses in a way that's going to be financially challenging.

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Speaker 2: So I know that just so people understand that, and

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Speaker 2: not everybody is a business owner, but everybody can understand

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Speaker 2: what business owners go through. You have a couple of

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Speaker 2: locations in Cambridge, you don't own the properties, no, but

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Speaker 2: you rent correct.

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Speaker 3: We rent, and we've rented at the location at Grendlston

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Speaker 3: where we've been it for fifty five years. We've been

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Speaker 3: renting the whole time.

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Speaker 2: I think we could call you a long term tenant.

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Speaker 2: I think we call you a long term tenant. So

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Speaker 2: under the lease, the real estate taxes are picked up

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Speaker 2: by you as the as the renter.

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Speaker 3: Yes, and we actually don't know what they are until

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Speaker 3: they send us a bill after the fact. So we

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Speaker 3: sign a lease and it could be five years, it

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Speaker 3: could be ten years. For a while, Grendels was operating

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Speaker 3: with a twenty year lease, which is crazy, but that's

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Speaker 3: how you stay in business for fifty five years. But we,

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Speaker 3: you know, we commit to a rent rate. And then

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Speaker 3: on top of that, every year they send you a

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Speaker 3: bill for all of their expenses, which include property tax, water,

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Speaker 3: sewer insurance.

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Speaker 4: Et cetera.

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Speaker 2: And you do that willingly, now do you. I don't

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Speaker 2: know if Cambridge is on a fiscal year that starts

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Speaker 2: on July first, or like the federal government, the fiscal

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Speaker 2: year starts in October first. When do these tax bills

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Speaker 2: issue to the owners of the properties and when did

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Speaker 2: they in turn transfer them to you? Will they start

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Speaker 2: to issue as of January first. When when is the

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Speaker 2: when's the dreaded.

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Speaker 3: They send some I think they send them and they

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Speaker 3: don't like Honestly, I don't even look. I get a

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Speaker 3: bill and start figuring out I'm gonna pay. Yeah, but

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Speaker 3: I usually get my bills sometime in the summer, like

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Speaker 3: either in the earliest, like early summer or late summer

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Speaker 3: from my landlords.

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Speaker 2: Okay, so you may be on whole amount, the whole

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Speaker 2: maybe on the July first fiscal fiscal year that starts,

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Speaker 2: so a fiscal we're now in what's called fiscal twenty six.

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Speaker 2: And I don't want to get into the weeds here.

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Speaker 2: So what are other business owners other business owners saying

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Speaker 2: about this? This is a big number. You told me

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Speaker 2: that you're paying. I think you said twelve dollars a

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Speaker 2: square foot for rent? Is that?

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Speaker 1: Yeah?

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Speaker 3: And I mean I think that the what the city

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Speaker 3: is sort of laid out, as you know, kind of

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Speaker 3: the the effective rate is that you know, most people

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Speaker 3: are paying somewhere around twelve dollars square foot, and it's

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Speaker 3: going to go up to fourteen.

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Speaker 1: Now.

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Speaker 3: It all depends on where you are and what kind

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Speaker 3: of sector you're in. So some sectors are going to

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Speaker 3: go up a lot more, and then some neighborhoods are

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Speaker 3: going to go up more. And what's crazy is that

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Speaker 3: it's due to a net drop in real estate value

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Speaker 3: in the order of like twelve or thirteen percent. And

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Speaker 3: the big losses came from very specific areas, which are big,

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Speaker 3: large development, office and lab properties that lost value. And

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Speaker 3: the people who are still who are the resilient ones

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Speaker 3: who are still you know, still holding value are the

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Speaker 3: small businesses who are doing retail and restaurants and hotels.

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Speaker 3: What's going to be We're being punished essentially for for

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Speaker 3: ability to hang on well.

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Speaker 2: Realistically, Carrie, I assume what happens in those circumstances is

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Speaker 2: just as the landlord passes on the real estate bills

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Speaker 2: to his tenants and you have to pay more, that

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Speaker 2: is going to have to impact your customers because obviously

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Speaker 2: you you have to maintain uh some profit level.

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Speaker 3: No, So I mean this is not something that's going

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Speaker 3: to change the prices. I mean, this is not going

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Speaker 3: to turn into prices.

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Speaker 2: I don't think how do you how do you absorb

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Speaker 2: how do you absorb this cost then without having an

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Speaker 2: impact on your your bottom line.

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Speaker 3: Well, when it comes to small businesses, we have much different.

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Speaker 3: We are not these sort of mercenary extractive operations that

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Speaker 3: come in and just come here to get you know,

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Speaker 3: a dollar for a dollar, you know, five dollars for

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Speaker 3: a dollar. We don't have a formula like that. We

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Speaker 3: have in it for the long haul. And so our

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Speaker 3: point is to you know, essentially attract the custom and

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Speaker 3: keep them forever and ideally stick around and continue to

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Speaker 3: serve them. So what we have to do is be

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Speaker 3: like good custodians of our client base and and you know,

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Speaker 3: deal with these costs and you know, make efficiencies and

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Speaker 3: make changes that make it possible for people to continue

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Speaker 3: to participate with their business because that connection is more

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Speaker 3: important than whatever dollar is here and there when it

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Speaker 3: comes to our relationship with our guest.

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Speaker 2: So you're looking at which is which is what good

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Speaker 2: business owners do. You're looking at long term relationships, not

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Speaker 2: you know, your your every quarter making a certain number

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Speaker 2: every quarter. But the bottom No, and.

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Speaker 3: That's why we haven't left yet.

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Speaker 2: No, I get it, I get it, but it's still

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Speaker 2: it's going to be very difficult. And what I'd like

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Speaker 2: to do is that we've got to take a break

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Speaker 2: here for a couple of commercials. We got to make

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Speaker 2: some money and then when we get back, we get

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Speaker 2: some folks who might want to call in. Cambridge is

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Speaker 2: very sought after community. It's got a lot of issues

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Speaker 2: that gots it has a lot of problems with you know,

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Speaker 2: parking and getting in and getting out. It's but everybody

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Speaker 2: loves the hustle and bustle of it. And and you know,

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Speaker 2: your restaurants are quite popular. But nobody likes to see

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Speaker 2: a twenty two percent increase in anything. And and that

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Speaker 2: is what's going on here. And there's just it's almost

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Speaker 2: a perfect economic storm for a city like Cambridge, which

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Speaker 2: has been doing so well for so long, and now

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Speaker 2: there's a little bit of a down draft. Uh. And

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Speaker 2: it's it's going to every everyone's going to kind of

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Speaker 2: catch a cold here, I guess from from the from

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Speaker 2: this down draft. My guest is Carrie.

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Speaker 4: There's opportunities.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, No, Carrie Coolser, owner of Grendel's Den and the

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Speaker 2: Sea Hag.

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Speaker 4: Uh.

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Speaker 2: If you happen to be in Cambridge and you'd like

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Speaker 2: to calm interview outside of Cambridge, your mother welcome six one, seven, five, four, ten,

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Speaker 2: thirty six three one, ten thirty. The problem for the

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Speaker 2: business owners is there's not much they can do here.

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Speaker 2: It's not as if they can refuse to pay because

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Speaker 2: they're obligated. And yet somehow they don't want to pass

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Speaker 2: this on to their customers, longtime customers, particularly again the Grendel's. Then,

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Speaker 2: I did I know it'd been there a long time.

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Speaker 2: I didn't realize fifty two years. That is quite quite

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Speaker 2: the track record. We'll be back on nights. I feel

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Speaker 2: free to join the conversation. Coming back right after this.

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Speaker 1: You're on Night Side with Dan Ray on WBZ, Boston's

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Speaker 1: news radio.

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Speaker 2: Well, I guess there is Carrie Coolser. She's the owner

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Speaker 2: of Grendel's Den and the Sea Hag. Let's get the

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Speaker 2: phone calls and see what people think. Again. I just

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Speaker 2: have a feeling that with all of the cuts from

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Speaker 2: the federal government, there's going to be more and more

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Speaker 2: demands on the states and the communities within the states.

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Speaker 2: So this property tax increase comes at a particularly in

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Speaker 2: my opinion, and especially a bad time. Let me go

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Speaker 2: to Steve, who's calling from Cambridge. Steve, appreciate hearing from you.

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Speaker 2: You're wrong with the owner of Grendel's Den.

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Speaker 5: Carrie, cool, Sir Dan, it's kilt, Sir Kiltzer, Kilt.

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Speaker 2: Sir Kiltzer.

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Speaker 4: Okay, well I've been Carrie.

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Speaker 5: I've been going to Grendel's. Not as much as I

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Speaker 5: used to, but back into nineteen seventy two or three,

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Speaker 5: and I knew your father and mother not well. But

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Speaker 5: I actually skied with your father a couple of times.

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Speaker 2: Is Carrie still there? Have we lost Yeah, we've lost

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Speaker 2: Carry actually, Rob, had you noticed we've lost the caller

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Speaker 2: with the guests?

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Speaker 4: Yeah?

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Speaker 2: Well it was funny. I asked, we'll get Carrie back

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Speaker 2: on the line here. But I asked the guests how

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Speaker 2: she pronounced her name, and she told me he's like Coolser, Like, maybe.

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Speaker 5: I've got it wrong, Dan. But Herbie was from Germany,

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Speaker 5: a very nice guy, a real character, ran his restaurant

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Speaker 5: with his wife for many for Herbie for many, many.

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Speaker 2: Many years. We've rejoined by our guest here, Steve, so

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Speaker 2: let me get carry. We lost you there for some

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Speaker 2: some way again we have with us Steph Cambridge, who

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Speaker 2: corrected me in the pronunciation of your name. So I'm

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Speaker 2: going to give him a chance to chat with you.

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Speaker 2: He's been a customer of yours since nineteen seventy two.

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Speaker 2: And apparently he skied with your dad. So so Carrie,

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Speaker 2: say hi to Steve from Cambridge.

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Speaker 5: Hi, Kerrie, I used to see with your father a

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Speaker 5: couple of times out in Snowbird.

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Speaker 3: Yes, and others somehow managed to live a life of

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Speaker 3: skiing in his day.

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Speaker 5: And he also was quite a roller skater in Harvard

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Speaker 5: Square and the roller skater.

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Speaker 3: Yes, that's how we used to market. Well we still

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Speaker 3: do it actually, leaflet. Ah, good for you, We hand

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Speaker 3: out leaflets. It's it's still a good old fashioned paper.

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Speaker 3: And the and the foot traffic that really drives business.

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Speaker 5: And I didn't know that you started the sea hag

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Speaker 5: yep on Mount d'ubern Street, on Mount Auburn Street. I

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Speaker 5: think right, yes, it's.

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Speaker 3: In the location that used to be the boat house.

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Speaker 3: Oh right right, But by the way, Kerry, Steve Tommy's lunch.

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Speaker 2: Steve. Yes, let me just jump in here for a second.

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Speaker 2: Steve corrected my pronunciation of your last name. I thought

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Speaker 2: you had told me to pronounce.

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Speaker 5: It cool, sir, Yes, culture Gerry, I always kiltser.

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Speaker 3: Oh, well you know it's like it's a German you

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Speaker 3: so you know you can it's hard for the for

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Speaker 3: the for the for people to actually get the uh perfectly.

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Speaker 5: It's like, Okay, I'm going.

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Speaker 2: To stick Steve. I know you're a stickler for this,

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Speaker 2: but I'm going to stick with culture because that's that's

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Speaker 2: the best thing I can do. Why don't you go ahead?

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Speaker 5: He tells you to do. Listen carry What I'm interested

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Speaker 5: in is Dan and you are. Dan was talking about

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Speaker 5: how booming Cambridge is. But I I've lived in Cambridge

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Speaker 5: fifty years and we've got an awful lot of empty

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Speaker 5: storefronts and I just don't see how the city council.

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Speaker 5: Can I assume this was the City Council, Yes it was,

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Speaker 5: I used. I mean, I see so many empty storefronts

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Speaker 5: in Cambridge and it makes me worried, and I just

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Speaker 5: don't see how at this particular time they could do this.

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Speaker 5: I mean, don't you notice a lot of empty storefronts

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Speaker 5: in Cambridge.

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Speaker 3: I think the City Council has been actually worried about that,

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Speaker 3: and they've had numerous meetings and hearings on this, and

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Speaker 3: I think it's a real challenge for the way we're

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Speaker 3: you know, are the kind of policy levers that they have,

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Speaker 3: don't really they have not figured out at least or

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Speaker 3: had the political will to, at a state level and

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Speaker 3: a city level, address the economic realities that are pushing

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Speaker 3: people into essentially letting their properties stay vacant. And you know,

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Speaker 3: there is a world in which a tax increase could

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Speaker 3: essentially motivate property owners to start passing those expenses on

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Speaker 3: to tenants, but they'd have to be able to make

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Speaker 3: the rent low enough for tenants to want to be there.

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Speaker 5: Do you have any ideas, I mean, how Cambridge could

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Speaker 5: perhaps ease the situation for small business owner and it's

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Speaker 5: at the same time be able to get their budget

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Speaker 5: so that we've got good fire and police and so forth.

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Speaker 3: Well, Cambridge Local First, which is the organization that I

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Speaker 3: share the board of but don't actually do the real

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Speaker 3: nitty gritty work, But our staff has been working on

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Speaker 3: researching avenues for this, and we do think that there's

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Speaker 3: some ways that there are legal existing ways that could

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Speaker 3: could could essentially create some kind of incentive to filling

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Speaker 3: spaces and prioritizing smaller businesses. And I think that there

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Speaker 3: have to be real thought about about devising policies that

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Speaker 3: create an economic environment in which small businesses can enter

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Speaker 3: the market, and that smaller, smaller investors can enter the

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Speaker 3: market where they can actually own real property. Because one

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Speaker 3: of the big vulnerabilities that we see when properties values,

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Speaker 3: you know, suddenly decrease so radically because a few big

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Speaker 3: players pull out, is that, you know, we're much more

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Speaker 3: resilient when we have a lot more players in the

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Speaker 3: market and much smaller players who are invested in sticking around, which,

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Speaker 3: as I was saying, you know, small businesses really are

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Speaker 3: here for long haul, and you know, we don't really

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Speaker 3: make money in that extractive way where we just need

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Speaker 3: to make a buck today and then you know, once

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Speaker 3: we got it, we got to get out of here.

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Speaker 3: We're not you know, we're not leaving. We're going to

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Speaker 3: We're going to work with the community for a long time.

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Speaker 2: I want to ask both of you a question, and

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Speaker 2: I wonder if the fact that my observations, we have

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Speaker 2: fewer and fewer members of Congress, members of the state legislature,

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Speaker 2: and I assume members of the city council in Cambridge

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Speaker 2: and elsewhere, who have ever run a business, who have

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Speaker 2: ever run a small business. A lot of people who

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Speaker 2: were getting into politics want to be the effort ever

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Speaker 2: lifelong politicians never made a payroll? Is that part of

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Speaker 2: the problem. And I know this question is the potential

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Speaker 2: of getting you in trouble Gary with the politicians in Cambridge.

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Speaker 2: But if they've never made a payroll, if they've never

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Speaker 2: some week when they didn't have enough profit didn't pay themselves,

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Speaker 2: did they not understand how difficult it is to run

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Speaker 2: a small business. I'm talking about politicians generally. Steve, I

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Speaker 2: know how you might answer this, but I want to

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Speaker 2: hear what Carrie says.

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Speaker 5: First.

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Speaker 3: Well, our elected officials in Cambridge that I've met and

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Speaker 3: I've had conversations with seriously personally, many of them have

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Speaker 3: been in the business and they have empathy. They just

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Speaker 3: don't feel like they have.

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Speaker 5: That.

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Speaker 3: They're empowered, empowered you know, in any way legally at

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Speaker 3: a state level, to do the things that they think

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Speaker 3: would be great. And I also think that politically, you know,

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Speaker 3: there are forces that make it impossible for them to

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Speaker 3: do that without alienating somebody else. So I mean to

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Speaker 3: make the problem with the put it against the residential

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Speaker 3: taxes you've identified.

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Speaker 2: I don't know what the percentage of numbers of politicians

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Speaker 2: who have ever owned a business, but I know very

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Speaker 2: few politicians. Most politicians today are lifelong politicians. They start

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Speaker 2: at one level. Steve, what I'll bet you your reaction

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Speaker 2: to that is somewhat different.

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Speaker 5: Go ahead, Steve, no No, I would say a big

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Speaker 5: problem with people who influence policy in the United States,

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Speaker 5: even on a local level or even a federal level

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Speaker 5: or a state level, do not understand the concept of

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Speaker 5: profit and loss. They have all worked in academia or

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Speaker 5: have been at the Senate or the House of Representatives

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Speaker 5: for fifty years. Their paycheck comes in no matter what happens.

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Speaker 2: You're agreeing with me, Steve, you disagree with me absolutely.

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Speaker 5: And then another problem in Cambridge. And I don't know

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Speaker 5: if Carrie wants to chime in on this because it's

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Speaker 5: a little I think the Cambridge mindset, you know, is

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Speaker 5: all we want a cultural center here, we want a

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Speaker 5: community organizing center there, and they don't realize that someone

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Speaker 5: has to pay the taxes to support all of this

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Speaker 5: and support our policemen and our firemen and fire women

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Speaker 5: and fire policewomen, you know, And they think everything can

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Speaker 5: be like another you know, cultural arts center. And I

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Speaker 5: think culture is very important and art is very important,

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Speaker 5: but the city that's not what runs the city.

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Speaker 2: All right, Steve, as always after.

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Speaker 5: Kerry, thank you, thank you, Dan.

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Speaker 3: Thanks so much. I'm glad you mentioned some memories of

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Speaker 3: my dad and his roller seating.

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Speaker 5: He was a great guy.

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Speaker 4: But bye bye, Thanks Dave.

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Speaker 2: We get back more phone calls six one, seven, two, five,

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Speaker 2: four ten, thirty, six, one, seven, nine thirty. My guest

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Speaker 2: is is a very polite person, and obviously having run

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Speaker 2: a business for fifty two years, she knows of what

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Speaker 2: she speaks. Uh that that is for certain. But when

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Speaker 2: I saw this headline in the Globe, matter fact, when

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Speaker 2: I saw it online yesterday, it said Cambridge Bruce commercial

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Speaker 2: tax rate twenty two percent and then it had parentheses.

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Speaker 2: That is not a typo. That's how significant a tax increase.

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Speaker 2: They they did not use the parentheses. This is not

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Speaker 2: a typo in the print edition of the Boston Globe.

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Speaker 2: But we'll we'll continue. If you are a business owner

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Speaker 2: and you would like to commiserate with my guest, Carrie Coolser,

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Speaker 2: owner of Grendel's Den and the Sea Hag, that would

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Speaker 2: be great, uh six six seven. I think at which

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Speaker 2: president it was that said, you know, you know, business

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Speaker 2: is the business of America and without small business, we

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Speaker 2: as communities are going to be in big trouble. And

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Speaker 2: this is a problem in Cambridge and it may again

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Speaker 2: be a harbinger of things to come in other communities.

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Speaker 2: We'll be right back on Nightside with more calls for

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Speaker 2: Kerrie cusor culser I got it that time. We'll be

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Speaker 2: back on Nightside after this.

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Speaker 1: You're on night Side with Dan Ray. I'm w BZ

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Speaker 1: Boston's news Radio.

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Speaker 2: Let me get to Harvey. Silverglade has joined us. Harvey

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Speaker 2: is a long time Cambridge resident. Uh and Harvey, I'm

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Speaker 2: delighted you called in love to know what you think

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Speaker 2: about what's going on with this increase of the commercial

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Speaker 2: tax rate for small businesses, especially in Cambridge. You're on

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Speaker 2: with my guest Kerry Culture, owner of Grendel's Den.

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Speaker 4: But as I love Greenwald's. Then, but let me this

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Speaker 4: is a complicated issue. And the reason it's complicated is this.

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Speaker 4: The reason that Cambridge has raised commercial taxes is because

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Speaker 4: the Trump administration has reduced federal aids the states and cities.

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Speaker 2: Okay, yeah, I alluded to that earlier. I think that's

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Speaker 2: I know that.

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Speaker 4: Where do you see where I'm going? They did that

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Speaker 4: presumably because the federal deficit was out of control. Of course,

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Speaker 4: government being government, this is the reason I'm a member

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Speaker 4: of the Libertarian Party. Government being government. The federal deficit

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Speaker 4: has ballooned. It has not. The cutting federal aid is

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Speaker 4: not reduced to federal deficit. The federal deficity is totally

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Speaker 4: out of control.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, you know what, Harvey, I will never correct you

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Speaker 2: on anything. However, the federal debt is the accumulated deficit.

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Speaker 2: The deficit is what the deficit is at any given year. Yes,

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Speaker 2: there has been some efforts with the tariffs, et cetera

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Speaker 2: to reduce the federal debt a little bit if you

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Speaker 2: believe the numbers that are coming, you know, out of

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Speaker 2: the administration. But the point you're making is absolutely accurate.

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Speaker 2: So other than the reference clarification with debt and deficit,

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Speaker 2: you continue to go right ahead. I'm sorry.

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Speaker 4: So, federal spending is totally out of control. The confidence

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Speaker 4: of a dollar is sinking. So the federal government is

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Speaker 4: spending way more money than it is bringing in. Now, Cambridge,

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Speaker 4: instead of taking this opportunity to reduce expenses and increase taxes,

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Speaker 4: you know, the Libertarian Party has the setting. That's the

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Speaker 4: problem with government is government itself. Out of the government,

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Speaker 4: our governments are unable to control spending. And instead of

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Speaker 4: taking this opportunity to cut the Cambridge as a welfare state,

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Speaker 4: instead of taking the opportunity to cut some of the

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Speaker 4: spending in Cambridge, they have raised taxes. Classic government reaction

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Speaker 4: to a problem.

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Speaker 2: Well, I mentioned in my question to Steve last Hour,

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Speaker 2: and it's something that I truly believe in, is that

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Speaker 2: it used to be that the state legislature here in Massachusetts,

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Speaker 2: and I think probably the city council and most of

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Speaker 2: the cities, they were kind of part time jobs, and

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Speaker 2: they were oftentimes the people who were elected were business people,

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Speaker 2: small business owners, whether it was at the legislature. Harvey,

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Speaker 2: you've you've run a law practice for many many years,

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Speaker 2: and and you, like anyone who runs a business, as

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Speaker 2: Carrie has, you got to make payroll, and the last

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Speaker 2: person who gets paid is the owner, because you have

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Speaker 2: to pay the employees. And I just think there's an

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Speaker 2: overwhelming number of people who are in positions of authority

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Speaker 2: in government who have no clue what it is like

437
00:26:33,080 --> 00:26:37,239
Speaker 2: to make a payroll to run a business. And I know,

438
00:26:37,400 --> 00:26:40,280
Speaker 2: I'm not sure if you buy that theory, but it's

439
00:26:40,320 --> 00:26:43,080
Speaker 2: one that I firmly believe in because if you do

440
00:26:43,200 --> 00:26:48,520
Speaker 2: go back and look, you can see that the background

441
00:26:48,560 --> 00:26:55,200
Speaker 2: of our politicians are becoming much more lifetime professional politicians.

442
00:26:55,280 --> 00:26:58,159
Speaker 4: Right, That's the core of that is the core of

443
00:26:58,160 --> 00:27:01,400
Speaker 4: the problem. They do not have they do not have

444
00:27:01,440 --> 00:27:07,919
Speaker 4: a payroll to make and you know they're full time

445
00:27:08,800 --> 00:27:10,920
Speaker 4: and they have no idea what it needs to make

446
00:27:10,920 --> 00:27:11,480
Speaker 4: a payroll.

447
00:27:12,840 --> 00:27:16,480
Speaker 2: So so how can we other than just throw we

448
00:27:16,480 --> 00:27:20,480
Speaker 2: can people out of office? Carry what can be done

449
00:27:21,080 --> 00:27:25,879
Speaker 2: by residents in Cambridge and residence in other communities to

450
00:27:26,040 --> 00:27:32,639
Speaker 2: avoid these draconian real estate increases that are going to

451
00:27:32,680 --> 00:27:36,919
Speaker 2: be passed on to small businesses. Are you just basically

452
00:27:37,320 --> 00:27:40,680
Speaker 2: at the bottom of the totem pole here and you're

453
00:27:40,720 --> 00:27:44,080
Speaker 2: going to have to absorb this? Or can can residents

454
00:27:44,119 --> 00:27:50,920
Speaker 2: and voters do something about this practice, this political practice?

455
00:27:51,200 --> 00:27:51,400
Speaker 4: Well?

456
00:27:51,440 --> 00:27:54,760
Speaker 3: I think that for one thing, residents of Cambridge need

457
00:27:54,800 --> 00:27:57,840
Speaker 3: to understand like what their voice actually is in the

458
00:27:57,880 --> 00:28:00,879
Speaker 3: city and they can they don't vote nearly in the

459
00:28:00,920 --> 00:28:03,720
Speaker 3: numbers that they should for local politicians. I mean, we

460
00:28:03,760 --> 00:28:06,160
Speaker 3: get kind of bogged down what's happening federally. But what's

461
00:28:06,200 --> 00:28:09,560
Speaker 3: more important is what's happening locally and the things that

462
00:28:09,560 --> 00:28:12,719
Speaker 3: that are funded by this budget in Cambridge are actually

463
00:28:12,720 --> 00:28:14,520
Speaker 3: things that touch your lives a lot more than the

464
00:28:14,520 --> 00:28:18,199
Speaker 3: stuff that the federal government is doing. Frankly, you know

465
00:28:18,280 --> 00:28:21,520
Speaker 3: we're talking about you know, I think that you know

466
00:28:21,840 --> 00:28:24,080
Speaker 3: are caller Harvey. I think that you and I both

467
00:28:24,119 --> 00:28:27,479
Speaker 3: are the beneficiaries is of fantastic Cambridge public school system

468
00:28:27,800 --> 00:28:29,920
Speaker 3: that got us to the point where we could move

469
00:28:29,960 --> 00:28:32,479
Speaker 3: on and do other things. You know, we we were

470
00:28:32,520 --> 00:28:35,679
Speaker 3: funding schools, we're funding you know, trash pickups, stuff that

471
00:28:35,680 --> 00:28:38,320
Speaker 3: people really like, you know, and they don't realize that

472
00:28:38,360 --> 00:28:41,000
Speaker 3: their vote matters for how that plays out, because somebody

473
00:28:41,040 --> 00:28:42,800
Speaker 3: could come in, you know, you could elect people and

474
00:28:42,880 --> 00:28:45,680
Speaker 3: who just cut schooling and cut trash. I think everyone

475
00:28:45,720 --> 00:28:48,479
Speaker 3: would be kind of unhappy about that. But you know,

476
00:28:49,080 --> 00:28:51,640
Speaker 3: when it comes to the perspective of small businesses that

477
00:28:51,720 --> 00:28:53,800
Speaker 3: we're really not you know, we're not trying to take

478
00:28:54,000 --> 00:28:55,000
Speaker 3: away from that pie.

479
00:28:55,040 --> 00:28:55,920
Speaker 1: We love.

480
00:28:56,320 --> 00:28:59,480
Speaker 3: We love the fact that Cambridge spends money and has

481
00:28:59,520 --> 00:29:05,200
Speaker 3: a healthy infrastructure and great public schools that attract great residents.

482
00:29:05,720 --> 00:29:08,640
Speaker 3: But we need to make it accessible for people to

483
00:29:08,360 --> 00:29:11,959
Speaker 3: to live and work here and then ultimately continue to

484
00:29:11,960 --> 00:29:16,160
Speaker 3: build wealth and and and and build a relationship with

485
00:29:16,200 --> 00:29:21,680
Speaker 3: the community and not just come and go come really

486
00:29:21,680 --> 00:29:24,320
Speaker 3: worried about is what we're really worried about is big

487
00:29:24,440 --> 00:29:27,560
Speaker 3: you know sort of private equity, big institutions that come

488
00:29:27,560 --> 00:29:31,200
Speaker 3: in and essentially set the set the price. You know,

489
00:29:31,240 --> 00:29:33,480
Speaker 3: it's price discovery. That's really the problem. When it comes

490
00:29:33,480 --> 00:29:38,080
Speaker 3: to you know, commercial real estate and the kinds of

491
00:29:38,800 --> 00:29:41,520
Speaker 3: competition that we face as small businesses versus you know,

492
00:29:41,640 --> 00:29:44,160
Speaker 3: national chains. It's we're not We're not in the fight

493
00:29:44,240 --> 00:29:45,840
Speaker 3: with the city budget at all.

494
00:29:46,720 --> 00:29:49,520
Speaker 2: Well, you you you have other issues at Cambridge. You

495
00:29:49,600 --> 00:29:54,680
Speaker 2: have some big universities. Who do who in hospitals?

496
00:29:54,680 --> 00:29:55,000
Speaker 5: Who pay?

497
00:29:55,160 --> 00:29:57,800
Speaker 3: Who pay my rent? I mean who? Honestly, like the

498
00:29:58,080 --> 00:30:01,280
Speaker 3: population of the university is the bread and butter of

499
00:30:01,560 --> 00:30:03,760
Speaker 3: most of my of what we do in Harvard Square

500
00:30:03,760 --> 00:30:04,680
Speaker 3: at least, no, no.

501
00:30:04,480 --> 00:30:07,479
Speaker 2: No, I totally get that. But but with Harvard, and

502
00:30:07,520 --> 00:30:09,320
Speaker 2: again this is not a criticism of Harvard. I have

503
00:30:09,360 --> 00:30:13,600
Speaker 2: a couple of children graduate from Harvard. They have a

504
00:30:13,640 --> 00:30:18,560
Speaker 2: fifty two billion dollar endowment. That's at least that's the

505
00:30:18,600 --> 00:30:23,080
Speaker 2: last number I saw. And they are on real estate,

506
00:30:23,240 --> 00:30:27,120
Speaker 2: which doesn't contribute. They may make some payments in lieu

507
00:30:27,120 --> 00:30:30,880
Speaker 2: of taxes, as does Maybem I T. But you know

508
00:30:31,000 --> 00:30:34,200
Speaker 2: that's a fact, that's a factor. You know, again, if

509
00:30:34,600 --> 00:30:39,800
Speaker 2: you're happy with what's going on generally, I think that

510
00:30:39,800 --> 00:30:45,200
Speaker 2: that invariably the average person turns and says, well, make

511
00:30:45,280 --> 00:30:48,360
Speaker 2: the business owners. You're grouped in with the big business

512
00:30:48,360 --> 00:30:55,480
Speaker 2: owners and you're not big business. I go ahead of.

513
00:30:58,200 --> 00:31:04,360
Speaker 4: The fact is Harvard and MIT bring a tremendous amount

514
00:31:04,400 --> 00:31:08,120
Speaker 4: of wealth to the city of Cambridge. Okay, even though

515
00:31:08,120 --> 00:31:12,120
Speaker 4: they don't pay as much taxes as they wouldn't fail

516
00:31:12,120 --> 00:31:18,840
Speaker 4: a commercial adventures, they have a there's a tremendous high

517
00:31:18,920 --> 00:31:26,800
Speaker 4: takes industrial base here because we have MIT in Cambridge universe.

518
00:31:27,080 --> 00:31:32,360
Speaker 4: It's a myth that universities cost Cambridge money. They make

519
00:31:32,760 --> 00:31:33,680
Speaker 4: Cambridge money.

520
00:31:34,880 --> 00:31:38,200
Speaker 2: Well, they do, Harvey, but they have a fifty two

521
00:31:38,840 --> 00:31:43,000
Speaker 2: billion dollar endowment. And I don't know if Harvard or

522
00:31:43,120 --> 00:31:46,560
Speaker 2: MI T. I don't think they pay real estate taxes

523
00:31:46,680 --> 00:31:48,840
Speaker 2: and I don't know what they pay in lieu of

524
00:31:48,880 --> 00:31:53,320
Speaker 2: taxes sometimes universities. Of course, church is a tax exempt

525
00:31:53,320 --> 00:31:57,120
Speaker 2: as well. That's a lot of property that ends up

526
00:31:57,120 --> 00:32:01,760
Speaker 2: being tax exempt. But hey, we have different points of

527
00:32:01,800 --> 00:32:04,800
Speaker 2: view here, which is what Nightside is all about. Harvey

528
00:32:04,880 --> 00:32:07,720
Speaker 2: is always I thank you so much for joining us. Carrie,

529
00:32:07,960 --> 00:32:10,520
Speaker 2: I got to take a break, and we got a

530
00:32:10,520 --> 00:32:12,720
Speaker 2: couple more calls we'll deal with on the other side.

531
00:32:12,760 --> 00:32:15,479
Speaker 2: Harvey is always thank you so much for your for

532
00:32:15,520 --> 00:32:18,640
Speaker 2: your time and your insights. Carrie, stay right there. We

533
00:32:18,200 --> 00:32:20,600
Speaker 2: got we got one more segment coming up, and if

534
00:32:20,640 --> 00:32:24,000
Speaker 2: any other business owners want to join the conversation, feel

535
00:32:24,000 --> 00:32:28,040
Speaker 2: free Cambridge or otherwise. Six one seven two four thirty

536
00:32:28,320 --> 00:32:31,360
Speaker 2: six one seven, nine thirty be right back on Nightside.

537
00:32:32,600 --> 00:32:37,760
Speaker 1: Night Side with Dan Ray. I'm Bzy Boston's news Radio.

538
00:32:38,600 --> 00:32:42,600
Speaker 2: We're talking about a pretty substantial commercial property tax rate

539
00:32:42,640 --> 00:32:46,360
Speaker 2: in Cambridge. With me is Carrie Coolser. She's the owner

540
00:32:46,360 --> 00:32:48,080
Speaker 2: of Grendel's Den and the Sea Hag, and we's going

541
00:32:48,160 --> 00:32:49,640
Speaker 2: to try to get at least a couple of callers

542
00:32:49,640 --> 00:32:51,840
Speaker 2: in here quickly. Let me go to Brian in Natick. Brian,

543
00:32:51,920 --> 00:32:59,240
Speaker 2: you are next on Nightside with Carry Kulser. Go right ahead, Brian. Okay.

544
00:32:59,280 --> 00:33:02,120
Speaker 2: If Brian, for whatever reason is not there, we will

545
00:33:02,120 --> 00:33:05,040
Speaker 2: put Brian on hold and we'll go to Rachel in Quincy.

546
00:33:05,200 --> 00:33:07,880
Speaker 2: Rachel your next outside, Go ahead, Rachel.

547
00:33:07,920 --> 00:33:13,520
Speaker 6: Apn I hope you're well. I it doesn't matter if

548
00:33:13,560 --> 00:33:18,040
Speaker 6: it's just Cambridge or whatever. My question is is, when

549
00:33:18,120 --> 00:33:26,680
Speaker 6: you have a an exempt, non taxable company, where are

550
00:33:26,760 --> 00:33:31,200
Speaker 6: the taxes that have to be paid going to Are

551
00:33:31,200 --> 00:33:35,560
Speaker 6: they going to our residences and they're going to increase it?

552
00:33:35,800 --> 00:33:37,360
Speaker 6: And that's not no.

553
00:33:37,640 --> 00:33:43,720
Speaker 2: It's pretty simple. It's pretty simple, Rachel. You know, hospitals, churches,

554
00:33:44,480 --> 00:33:47,560
Speaker 2: and universities are for the most part tax exempt. Many

555
00:33:47,560 --> 00:33:52,720
Speaker 2: of those institutions, particularly the universities, will pay a some

556
00:33:52,720 --> 00:33:55,680
Speaker 2: some form of a donation in lieu of taxes, but

557
00:33:55,720 --> 00:33:58,360
Speaker 2: it's always a fraction of what is the real value

558
00:33:58,400 --> 00:34:01,800
Speaker 2: of the property on which they're building sit And we

559
00:34:01,840 --> 00:34:05,040
Speaker 2: can have a conversation about that. But the money, whether

560
00:34:05,080 --> 00:34:08,399
Speaker 2: it comes from you know, donations by some of these

561
00:34:08,440 --> 00:34:10,839
Speaker 2: tax exempt groups, it's in what they call in lieu

562
00:34:10,920 --> 00:34:14,080
Speaker 2: of taxes or whether it's property taxes paid by residential

563
00:34:14,080 --> 00:34:18,720
Speaker 2: owners or meals taxes paid. It all goes into into

564
00:34:18,840 --> 00:34:21,560
Speaker 2: into the coffers of the city or the coffers of

565
00:34:21,560 --> 00:34:24,200
Speaker 2: the state, and then it's the lad it's the politicians

566
00:34:24,400 --> 00:34:28,240
Speaker 2: who decide how much money is spent, you know, on streets,

567
00:34:28,239 --> 00:34:31,520
Speaker 2: how much money is spent on fire and public safety

568
00:34:31,560 --> 00:34:33,440
Speaker 2: and all of that. That's that's what their job is.

569
00:34:33,520 --> 00:34:36,880
Speaker 2: I'm just saying that, in my opinion, too many of

570
00:34:36,880 --> 00:34:39,640
Speaker 2: the politicians now have become full time politicians and they

571
00:34:39,680 --> 00:34:41,720
Speaker 2: do not know what it takes to run a company,

572
00:34:42,000 --> 00:34:46,440
Speaker 2: as Carrie Coolster does and others. So that's as as

573
00:34:46,480 --> 00:34:48,040
Speaker 2: clear an answer as I can give you. I hope

574
00:34:48,040 --> 00:34:48,839
Speaker 2: that helps a little bit.

575
00:34:50,320 --> 00:34:56,400
Speaker 6: No, Dan, it completely makes me understand that, and I

576
00:34:56,560 --> 00:35:01,399
Speaker 6: get it. And you're right. You gotta eat something as

577
00:35:01,440 --> 00:35:06,240
Speaker 6: a business, and you give all the politicians that listen,

578
00:35:06,480 --> 00:35:09,040
Speaker 6: you know what they get one hundred thousand dollars. You've

579
00:35:09,040 --> 00:35:12,719
Speaker 6: got somebody in Quinsy right now that is trying to

580
00:35:12,760 --> 00:35:17,160
Speaker 6: get one hundred and seventy nine thousand dollars and he

581
00:35:17,440 --> 00:35:22,520
Speaker 6: owes more money to anything. It's just not okay.

582
00:35:22,880 --> 00:35:27,560
Speaker 2: We've talked with Quincy and and we'll come back into

583
00:35:27,560 --> 00:35:30,120
Speaker 2: a story on Quincy pretty soon, that's for sure. Rachel.

584
00:35:30,120 --> 00:35:31,680
Speaker 2: I'm going to try to get one more in here.

585
00:35:31,719 --> 00:35:35,759
Speaker 2: Thanks so much for joining us. Thanks Rachel. Let me

586
00:35:35,800 --> 00:35:37,600
Speaker 2: go to Brian. Let me say it, Brian. I hope

587
00:35:37,600 --> 00:35:44,480
Speaker 2: Brian is there, Brian, are you there? Excellent excellent work, Brian, Thank.

588
00:35:44,320 --> 00:35:47,720
Speaker 3: You very much, Carrie.

589
00:35:47,880 --> 00:35:49,880
Speaker 2: If there are folks in Cambridge who want to get

590
00:35:49,960 --> 00:35:54,959
Speaker 2: in touch with your organization, because obviously in unity there's

591
00:35:55,000 --> 00:35:57,960
Speaker 2: some strength. I think you mentioned the name of it.

592
00:35:58,040 --> 00:36:00,399
Speaker 2: It went by me very quickly. What is the group

593
00:36:00,400 --> 00:36:03,160
Speaker 2: that you're the chair of and it doesn't have a website?

594
00:36:03,960 --> 00:36:08,319
Speaker 3: Yes, Cambridge Local First. It's actually celebrating its twentieth anniversary

595
00:36:08,360 --> 00:36:12,520
Speaker 3: this year, So tune in and follow us on Instagram

596
00:36:13,120 --> 00:36:16,880
Speaker 3: at Cambridge Local First. It's a long it's a long word.

597
00:36:17,760 --> 00:36:19,680
Speaker 4: It's only it's only three words.

598
00:36:19,760 --> 00:36:23,160
Speaker 2: People can get that Cambridge Local First on Facebook. Is

599
00:36:23,480 --> 00:36:25,560
Speaker 2: it a dot commerce or they have to find you

600
00:36:25,600 --> 00:36:29,760
Speaker 2: through dot org? Okay, so it's and it's a tax

601
00:36:29,840 --> 00:36:32,920
Speaker 2: exempt the organization. That's good people can actually and we

602
00:36:33,360 --> 00:36:34,359
Speaker 2: contribution to it.

603
00:36:34,440 --> 00:36:39,120
Speaker 3: Okay, Yeah, we're celebrating our twentieth twentieth year. We you know,

604
00:36:39,200 --> 00:36:43,359
Speaker 3: represent We promote resilient local economies. That means residents and

605
00:36:43,520 --> 00:36:48,200
Speaker 3: businesses and and local politics. We believe that people should

606
00:36:48,239 --> 00:36:51,440
Speaker 3: be engaged and and focus on their local community and

607
00:36:51,520 --> 00:36:54,400
Speaker 3: appreciate it as the main thing that touches their lives.

608
00:36:54,640 --> 00:36:57,360
Speaker 2: But by the way, you you're so right on that point.

609
00:36:57,400 --> 00:37:00,160
Speaker 2: I just wanted to re emphasize when we voted the

610
00:37:00,239 --> 00:37:05,040
Speaker 2: presidential election. Everybody think they're going to impact the presidential election.

611
00:37:05,239 --> 00:37:07,439
Speaker 2: The fact of the matter is we know pretty much

612
00:37:07,480 --> 00:37:09,440
Speaker 2: where which way most of the states are going to

613
00:37:09,480 --> 00:37:12,880
Speaker 2: break in a presidential election, and when you're one of

614
00:37:13,000 --> 00:37:15,720
Speaker 2: one hundred and seventy million people who are going to vote,

615
00:37:15,920 --> 00:37:18,120
Speaker 2: But when you vote in a town election, whether it's

616
00:37:18,160 --> 00:37:24,239
Speaker 2: Cambridge or Canton or wherever, your single vote has a

617
00:37:24,360 --> 00:37:28,680
Speaker 2: much higher impact because there are a few other votes.

618
00:37:29,080 --> 00:37:31,839
Speaker 2: You may be one of twenty thousand people or one

619
00:37:31,880 --> 00:37:35,280
Speaker 2: of ten thousand people, and a lot of those elections

620
00:37:35,280 --> 00:37:38,879
Speaker 2: sometimes end up being decided by literally a handful of votes.

621
00:37:38,920 --> 00:37:41,920
Speaker 2: So you're right, Carrie when you say more people need

622
00:37:41,960 --> 00:37:45,200
Speaker 2: to get involved. And I certainly hope that your business

623
00:37:45,200 --> 00:37:50,000
Speaker 2: owners coalesce and they let people understand that there's only

624
00:37:50,040 --> 00:37:52,840
Speaker 2: so much so much blood you can get out of

625
00:37:52,840 --> 00:37:54,840
Speaker 2: a stone and so only so much money you can

626
00:37:54,880 --> 00:37:57,160
Speaker 2: get out of a business owner. Thanks so much for

627
00:37:57,280 --> 00:37:59,120
Speaker 2: joining us tonight, and I hope we've helped you a

628
00:37:59,160 --> 00:37:59,560
Speaker 2: little bit.

629
00:38:00,560 --> 00:38:02,160
Speaker 3: Thanks so much for having me, and it was a

630
00:38:02,200 --> 00:38:04,640
Speaker 3: pleasure to talk to all of your guests and connect.

631
00:38:05,040 --> 00:38:07,600
Speaker 2: Thanks so much, Gary. We will talk again, and I'll

632
00:38:07,640 --> 00:38:10,920
Speaker 2: have to get over to Grendelsten someday. Steve speaks so

633
00:38:11,000 --> 00:38:13,080
Speaker 2: highly of it. When we get back, we're going to

634
00:38:13,120 --> 00:38:16,239
Speaker 2: talk about a very interesting development in the New Hampshire

635
00:38:16,400 --> 00:38:19,480
Speaker 2: Senate race. As I'm sure some of you have heard today,

636
00:38:19,920 --> 00:38:24,719
Speaker 2: former New Hampshire Senator johnnu no, not the governor, the

637
00:38:24,800 --> 00:38:27,840
Speaker 2: former senator has decided he's going to weigh in in

638
00:38:27,880 --> 00:38:33,439
Speaker 2: the race to succeed Jean Shaheen. This is fascinating. There's

639
00:38:33,480 --> 00:38:38,800
Speaker 2: going to be two heavyweight Republicans, John Sounhu, former senator

640
00:38:38,800 --> 00:38:43,320
Speaker 2: from New Hampshire, and Scott Brown, a former senator from Massachusetts,

641
00:38:43,880 --> 00:38:47,080
Speaker 2: who want the right to succeed, and they're going to

642
00:38:47,120 --> 00:38:49,120
Speaker 2: have to fight each other for it in a Republican primary.

643
00:38:49,160 --> 00:38:50,560
Speaker 2: We'll get to all of that right after the ten

644
00:38:50,600 --> 00:38:51,280
Speaker 2: o'clock News