$550 Million Dollar Slush Fund Revealed!

Civic duty (0.00 / 0)

More like this, please, BobB! Besides voting, I think every good citizen should know as much as possible about Home Rule and TIF.

Here in DeKalb, we've just laid off 3 firefighters, have forced the other unions to re-open their contracts to accept wage freezes to avoid other layoffs, and put badly-needed police station expansion plans on hold due to mismanagement and the economy.

Yet, in the past year we've replaced a functional parking lot with another $1.7 million (prettier) parking lot, and they continue a downtown and airport land-acquisition frenzy. Right now, in the midst of public safety worker shortages, they are "streetscaping" to create outdoor cafe areas.

When challenged on the spending priorities, the answer is, "But it's TIF money, not General Fund money." TIF is the magic bottomless candy jar.

http://www.goodjobsfirst.org/p...

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by: yinn @ Thu Jul 16, 2009 at 11:43:05 AM CDT

David Orr - an expert? (0.00 / 0)

He's hardly that in my book.  Orr's administrative skills on a good day run from A to B.  Many of you who are reading this are too young to know that Mayor Harold Washington made Orr his Vice Mayor in order to keep Orr from chairing a committee, which Washington knew Orr would screw up (and Washington didn't need that).

Orr does have skills as a spin doctor, so he was able to turn the near diaster that was his six days as Chicago's Acting Mayor into solid vote support from African-Americans and others in "Harold's coalition" to win the race for County Clerk in 1990.  It's just too bad he can't administrate even a tenth as well as he can spin and bomboozle the public.

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by: Randall Sherman @ Thu Jul 16, 2009 at 16:41:46 PM CDT

David Orr's 6 Days (4.00 / 1)

...were the most scandal-free tenure of any Chicago mayor in our lifetime.
  Seriously, Randall, many of us reading here are not too young to remember, and I have a little different take on it. I was at the meeting on the south side where pretty much every coalition alderman and committeeman came together after Harold's demise to discuss what to do next. David Orr was looked to as one of the main leaders.
   But, to get back to point, BobB's post is about TIF districts and David Orr has been on the right side of this issue, if you believe that transparency and accountability are something we could use more of with respect to TIF revenues and spending. This should be a good meeting and IVI's to be commended for staying on this issue.

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by: Jeff Smith @ Thu Jul 16, 2009 at 17:43:26 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

I think we were there together, IIRC. n/t (0.00 / 0)

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by: BobB @ Fri Jul 17, 2009 at 22:31:20 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

I was think about the Quinn Chappel meeting... (0.00 / 0)

which may not be the one you're describing here, but, memorable, nonetheless.

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by: BobB @ Fri Jul 17, 2009 at 22:33:12 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

He's on it. (0.00 / 0)

"When the Slush Dries Up":

"Since the first TIF was created in the 1980s, they've collected over $3 billion-any way you look at it that's a lot of money," says Orr. "I think TIFs demand more scrutiny. Folks need to know how this money is being spent so at the very least they can decide if this is how they want it to be spent."

[2007's] 11 percent increase was lower than in 2006, when the TIF take rose 30 percent from 2005. Orr and his aides say TIF revenues generally fall in the year following a reassessment (and Chicago's last reassessment was in 2006). For instance, in 2004, after the 2003 reassessment, the TIF take went up "only" 14.2 percent. By contrast, it grew 32.8 percent in 2003 and 44 percent in 2002. County experts predict the TIFs will collect well over $600 million in 2008-the bucks flowing into Mayor Daley's hands even as you read this.

Yet there's always the possibility that this goose has finally stopped laying golden eggs. TIF revenues go up as properties within the districts get redeveloped and generate new tax dollars. If development slows because of the economic meltdown, it raises a new problem with the TIFs--they're overextended.

On occasion the mayor and the council will directly dip into TIF reserves to pay for a project, as they did in the case of Millennium Park and are currently doing with Block 37. But by and large they finance deals by borrowing against future TIF dollars, selling bonds that get repaid with revenues they expect to collect in years to come. Last year, for instance, the city sold about $356 million in bonds to be paid back over the next 20 years with money collected in various TIF districts. The money was earmarked for building new schools.

This is one reason our schools are in bad shape -- but even more serious and immediate is the need for major deleveraging.

Manny Flores should get a lot of credit for fighting for TIF transparency, BTW.

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by: yinn @ Thu Jul 16, 2009 at 19:03:15 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

So what's your goal here. (4.00 / 1)

Why are you dissing an honest progressive? Do you hope to unseat him so we can get someone better, even as there are tons of other politicians that are neither progressive nor honest?

This is just like your approach to Jan. What is your goal with these kinds of criticisms? Are these left over fights from years ago when "many ... reading this are too young to know"? Because that's how you come off.

And I'm not interested in hearing a litany of David's and Jan's and Robert C's sins. It's all just so counter-productive given the current realities. There are so many better fights out there. There is really no reason to still be stuck with these fights from days of yore.

Lets focus our limited and precious energies on the likes of Strogers and Madigans and Daleys and Kirks and Roskams and on and on. Picking on David and Jan and Robert smack of sour grapes. Of course not of them are beyond criticism. I'm not saying that. I'm just questioning our priorities here.

Jeff Wegerson

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by: wegerje @ Thu Jul 16, 2009 at 22:12:53 PM CDT

[ Parent ]

build credibility before leveling attacks (3.00 / 1)

Randall, you seem to have one attitude, which mixes sour disposition with condescension.

I probably fall into this attitude more than I should too.

However, I think I gain some credibility from having substantive stuff to say and write on issues.

I suspect if you spent more time saying something insightful on issues, instead of bad-mouthing people, prognosticating political races and generally giving everyone a condescending attitude, you'd have more credibility when you lit into a politician.

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by: Carl Nyberg @ Fri Jul 17, 2009 at 01:40:00 AM CDT

[ Parent ]

Flores: Transparency & Technology (0.00 / 0)

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by: yinn @ Fri Jul 17, 2009 at 19:51:39 PM CDT

Pictures of the event FINALLY posted to the IVI facebook... (0.00 / 0)

page.

Maybe someone who was there could post a synopsis here.  As I wasn't able to make it, I'd love if someone could review it.

Carl?

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by: BobB @ Fri Jul 24, 2009 at 16:07:24 PM CDT