Rosemont the leader in suburban TIF district funds

The amount of taxpayer money going to tax increment financing projects in Cook County in 2006 jumped 29 percent over the previous year, Cook County Clerk David Orr reported Thursday.

More than $800 million is now diverted from schools and other taxing bodies to promote development, the report said. In Chicago alone, $500 million went to taxing districts, more than double the amount of the city's recent tax hike. In 2005, the city collected $386 million.

The suburban take remained relatively stable, increasing roughly $85,000 to $299.8 million.

A TIF district is a special taxing district created by municipalities to spur development in a specific area. As property values increase, the amount going to schools and other taxing bodies remains flat while the excess goes into a special account used to fund public and private improvements.

Proponents say the tool is a necessary, valuable one that shakes downtrodden areas out of their doldrums.

Critics say most of those areas -- like downtown Chicago -- are not downtrodden and would improve naturally on their own. They claim politically connected developers often benefit at the expense of taxpayers and schools.

In the suburbs, the hands-down leader in TIF district funds is Rosemont, which took in $31.9 million in 2006, according to the report. Second is Hoffman Estates at $26.9 million, followed by Glenview at 24.7 million, Evanston at 14 million, Cicero at $12.3 million, Palatine at $10.5 million and Lansing at $10 million.

More extensive reports on TIF districts are available at www.cookctyclerk.com.