Wednesday, March 14, 2018

While Chris Kennedy puts “rigged” property taxes at the center of his campaign, his own history is rife with examples of the same “racket” he now criticizes. For years, Kennedy has profited from property tax appeals while using a politically connected law firm for both his own home and business development. Even as Kennedy began his crusade against the property tax system in May, he was quietly pursuing more property tax appeals on his home.

REALITY CHECK:

• While Chris Kennedy was President of the Merchandise Mart, the Assessor and Board of Review assessed the building at $436,068,830, less than half of its appraised value.
• Chris Kennedy’s property tax firm, run by former Cook County Assessor Tom Tully, has donated at least $60,000 to members of the Cook County Board of Review.
• That very same tax firm helped Kennedy and his business partners get $1.5 million in property tax breaks at his luxury Wolf Point development in 2012 and 2013, along with an almost 63% rate slash in 2016.
• As Kennedy began talking about the rigged property tax system, he was actively pursuing a 20% reduction on his own home. He then quietly withdrew the appeal as the issue became central to his campaign.

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