BOSTON — Boston Mayor Michelle Wu delivered a fiery State of the City address on Wednesday night, taking aim at federal leadership and promising to build a unified city.
She took a strong stance against political leaders in Washington D.C., where she recently appeared before a Congressional committee to answer for her city’s policies limiting cooperation with federal immigration enforcement authorities, an appearance that offered her the chance to paint Boston as a welcoming and safe city on the national stage.
“It might have been my voice speaking into the microphone that day, but it was 700,000 voices that gave Congress their answer: This is our city,” she said. “No one tells Boston how to take care of our own. Not kings, and not presidents who think they are kings. Boston was born facing down bullies.”
HAPPENING NOW: Boston Mayor Michelle Wu delivering her third "State of the City" address https://t.co/YeVhoS1Mth
— Boston 25 News (@boston25) March 19, 2025
Wu’s address comes at a time when she and the city have caught the attention of Republicans in the federal government and as the mayor ramps up her reelection campaign.
She touted some accomplishments, like improving the graduation rate in Boston Public Schools and lowering the city’s crime rate, along with new programs she intends to spearhead.
“By next summer, we’ll have 1,000 new homes under construction in the heart of Downtown,” Wu said. “Tonight, I’m announcing that we are expanding this office-to-residential conversion program to universities and employers looking to reactivate office buildings as dorms or workforce housing.”
She also promised to revitalize the Downtown Boston by adding businesses to fill commercial vacancies with programs that support more diversity.
“In the last year alone, we’ve awarded over $150 million in city contracts to businesses owned by people of color — more than double the value in 2021,” Wu said.
Other programs announced included Boston’s first ever Anti-Displacement Action Plan, and the launch of the city’s Co-Purchasing Pilot Program to help with soaring residential costs.
“The best city for families should make it easy to live with the people you love,” Wu claimed. “When it comes to raising your family, Boston will be the village it takes.”
On the local level, Wu has been unsuccessful in her bid to rebalance the division of the property tax levy between commercial and residential properties, stymied by opposition in the Mass. Senate and among the commercial real estate industry.
“Tonight, Mayor Michelle Wu delivered her State of the City Address, attempting to sell Bostonians on her tenure. But just like the majority of residents, the MassGOP isn’t buying it,” MassGOP Chair Amy Carnevale said. “Her radical policies have turned Boston into a progressive experiment at the expense of hardworking families, and we stand firmly against her disastrous agenda.”
Wu is seeking reelection as mayor this fall, and she will have to contend with at least one challenger: Josh Kraft, the son of a wealthy family who has worked for decades in the city’s community service and philanthropic circles.
The State of the City address gave her a chance to show voters why she believes she should be re-elected.
“Boston is not a city that tolerates tyranny,” Wu concluded. “We are the city that leads in the storm; that stands up under pressure, together; and finds strength in each other. We will defend the people we love with all that we’ve got....God bless our City, God bless our people, and God save whoever messes with Boston.”
Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.
Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
©2025 Cox Media Group
