Mayor Rahm Emanuel made it clear Monday that the city will continue to rely on special taxing districts as an economic development tool, even as he tries to wash away the stain of public criticism that marred them in recent years.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel made it clear Monday that the city will continue to rely on special taxing districts as an economic development tool, even as he tries to wash away the stain of public criticism that marred them in recent years.
An analysis by the Chicago News Cooperative shows that TIF spending was allocated almost evenly between public works and subsidies for private interests.
Developers received $505 million in subsidies, just over 30 percent of the total TIF money spent by former Mayor Richard M. Daley. Those payments included $5.4 million to United Airlines to move its headquarters to Willis Tower, $13.7 million for the insurance giant CNA to renovate its South Loop headquarters and $8.5 million to help renovate the Carbide and Carbon building to house the Hard Rock Hotel on Michigan Avenue.
The mayor's task force on Tax Increment Financing (TIF) will be holding a public hearing on July 28 to get input from Chicagoans on ways to create more transparency and efficiency within the system.
The meeting will take place at the Chicago Military Academy at Bronzeville, located at 3519 S.Giles, at 6:00 p.m.
On one hand, helping one of the largest corporations in America doesn't seem to be a wise use of tax dollars. On the other hand, why should Walmart be excluded from the city's TIF bonanza -- nobody else is.
