Local governments have long struggled with universities and other non-profits that use city services, but don t pay real estate taxes. Newark, Del. has a novel solution.
The University of Delaware owns nearly 35 percent of the untaxed property in Newark but is exempt from paying property taxes. City officials want to tax the university $50 per student, per semester. The chaos of the post-pandemic economy has reached both the University of Delaware and the surrounding city of Newark. And it’s made the college town the latest stage for a long-standing debate about the financial contours of town-gown relationships.