Mayor Daley's Special Friend Who Doesn't Have to Pay Taxes

The Chicago Sun-Times reports:

The real estate tax tab for the Park Grill, the swanky restaurant in Millennium Park, now stands at $349,061.76. And the restaurant's owners don't have to pay a penny of it, a judge says.

Cook County began sending property tax bills to Park Grill's owners -- who include Matthew O'Malley and Mayor Daley's friend Fred Barbara -- after the Sun-Times reported their deal with the Chicago Park District didn't include real estate taxes.

Airport restaurants and other businesses that lease property from governments pay leasehold taxes, a form of property taxes. But Park Grill's owners sued, arguing they don't have a lease, just a concession license with the park district -- like any vendor who peddles hot dogs on the beach -- albeit one that lets them run an upscale restaurant in a prime spot downtown for 20 years, with an option for 10 more years. Park Grill also gets free water, gas and garbage pickup.

In an Oct. 19 ruling, Cook County Circuit Judge Richard J. Billik Jr. agreed with the owners. His reasoning, in part: If the restaurant was supposed to pay property taxes, wouldn't the park district have notified the county?

The 4-year-old restaurant is supposed to pay $275,000 a year, plus as much as 4 percent of gross sales. Park district officials couldn't say how much the restaurant has paid.

This is the very same Fred Barbara that knows how to drive mobsters around the Chicagoland area.