Chicago TIF's and Development

We've generally been supportive of any plans to redevelop the Old Post Office or the 62-acre wild land south of Roosevelt (between clark and the river).  While our pro-development stance continues to stand, it doesn't hurt to hear concerns around these developments.

This one specifically is of the proactive nature and one that is rooted in the TIF debated that has ranged for years in our city.  Ben Javorsky of the Chicago Reader (a common stalwart on the topic) use his sarcastic style to pen this piece on what he anticipates will be a funneling of TIF funds to developers of these properties.  He ends it with the following:

Maybe I shouldn't be so hard on Mayor Emanuel. Throwing TIF money at developers is what Chicago mayors do.

Mayor Daley did it for the better part of the 90s and 00s, and look where that got us. We can't adequately fund our schools because the tax growth from the new development is diverted to the TIF fund that underwrites the developer's profits.

It's a form of madness, people. Maybe we should call Rezko Village the loony bin.

While the existence of and use of TIF funds is a head-scratcher, they're a reality right now.  These developments have the potential to generate a lot of taxes and other benefits for the city and South Loop, so in our eyes, they seem warranted.

Not saying we support TIF's as a concept, just saying in this case they would most likely generate additional revenue for the city.