Rahm's Property tax hike will slam 42nd Ward but spare most wards

The Chicago Sun-Times reports:

With gleaming office towers and luxury condo buildings that dominate the skyline, the 42nd Ward is Chicago’s property tax king, paying one of every four tax dollars collected in the city last year, a Chicago Sun-Times analysis has found.

Seven other wards — most of them ringing the 42nd Ward — accounted for another 25 percent of the city’s total property tax tab.

These eight wards are going to bear the brunt of Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s $542 million property tax increase, which will begin kicking in this summer as City Hall moves to shore up its underfunded police and firefighter pension funds.

Together, the city’s remaining 42 other wards accounted for 49.4 percent of property taxes collected from all Chicago property owners by City Hall, the Chicago Board of Education, Cook County and other, smaller taxing bodies.

Thousands of homeowners — as well as some small businesses — in those 42 wards are likely to see their tax bills get smaller.

That’s the result of stagnant or declining property values in those areas — which will force homeowners in the city’s booming wards to pay an even greater share of the tab for police officers, firefighters, teachers and other government workers and services.

The truly great moments of blue America.