PLANNERS: PUT IT ON MY TAB
Over $600G owed for Hub events
The city of Boston is stuck with a more than halfmillion dollar bill racked up by late-paying vendors — ranging from the Big Apple Circus to Budweiser — that have held events on public spaces, a Herald review has found.
Hundreds of companies and individuals have landed on the delinquent list, including such well-known names as Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s campaign and the Boston Harborfest, and the city is now taking action to get their money back.
Records obtained by the Herald show the late bills include $118,500 in rent from a cafe, $14,394 for the city’s Dominican Festival, and nearly $11,000 for a commercial shoot by the famous Budweiser Clydesdales on City Hall Plaza. The bills also include relatively small amounts like $286 left unpaid from Hood’s “Ice Cream Sandwich Day.”
Warren’s campaign owed the city $2,876 for hosting a “Save Health Care” rally in January at Faneuil Hall, records show. After the Herald made inquiries about the late bill, Warren’s office made the payment this week.
The Boston Calling music festival, which in the past held big concerts on City Hall Plaza, owes the city $4,320, according to records. A Boston Calling spokesman did not respond to a Herald request for comment.
The total amount in late payments owed by vendors is more than $600,000, with $453,000 of that more than 91 days late, according to city records.
City officials acknowledge that collection efforts have been lax, and convened a meeting recently and told vendors it will now be taking a harder line on requiring on-time payments. Any vendor that still owes money will be denied future permits until they pay up.
“The Property Management Department has taken several steps to address any outstanding payments over the past year, including implementing stricter event approvals, meeting with annual event organizers to ensure payment plans are in place, reviewing tenant leases as they expire and applying new procedures to track services provided by the city for each event,” said Greg Rooney, head of property management.
One of the biggest debts belongs to the Big Apple Circus, which still owes the city more than $40,000 in costs related to renting City Hall Plaza for its big top performances. The circus went bankrupt last year but has since been bought by a new ownership group. The Herald was unable to reach a representative of the circus.
The DotHouse Health center, which serves mostly low income patients in the Dorchester area, is listed as owing the city $139,816 in security costs, according to records provided by Mayor Martin J. Walsh’s office. The health care center has a payment plan to pay off the balance and officials said the organization is adhering to the plan.
Budweiser’s nearly $11,000 debt came from unpaid security costs at the company’s filming of a TV ad spot at City Hall Plaza featuring the Clydesdales, records provided by the city show.
But after being contacted by the Herald, Budweiser will be paying up.
“After receiving your inquiry, we looked into the matter, and are now taking care of it directly with the City of Boston,” a spokesperson said.
Other late-paying vendors include events like Festival Colombiano, which owes $7,385, and the March for Jesus, an event held in 2014, which has a $3,140 late tab, according to records. The Yale Class of ’ 58 is listed as owing the city $1,753.
Records show a number of city and state agencies are also on the debtors’ list, including Massport, the city Parks and Recreation department, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the Boston Public Library system, and Boston Water and Sewer.