Two weeks ago, Mayor Rahm Emanuel let it be known that he was planning to raise property taxes by at least $500 million to pay off some of the many obligations he’s been ignoring for the last four years.
I was sort of hoping to get through this budget season without mentioning TIFs, but that’s a little like walking through a rainstorm without getting wet.
You know, I think this might be more fun to read about if I gave the property tax nomenclature colorful nicknames like crime reporters do for mobsters: Joey “the Clown” Tax Levy, Angelo “the Hook” EAV, or Jake “Greasy Thumb” Tax Rate.
So the burning issue of the day is what the mayor will do with the extra tens of millions of dollars in TIF slush.
There you have it, folks. We can wake up and pay attention to the details, or go back to sleep and let the mayor waste our money on stupid stuff. I don’t think we can afford to be stupid anymore. v
