By: Diane Benjamin

According to Illinois law when property owned by government is leased the lessee pays the property taxes:

The Edgar County Watchdogs did a story with lots of other details: https://edgarcountywatchdogs.com/2020/11/ousted-shelby-county-board-member-levonne-chaney-wants-taxpayers-to-pay-private-real-estate-taxes-on-her-way-out-the-door/?highlight=leaseholder

Tonight Normal is paying property taxes, actually they pay the bills before Council votes because Council is immaterial: PDF page 12 https://www.normalil.gov/ArchiveCenter/ViewFile/Item/4650

801 N Main

100-104 E Beaufort

If these spaces are empty the tax should be zero. If they are leased the lessee is required to pay the taxes.

104 North St

Taxpayers subsidized this location when Brady and Davis rented it. That practice continues with LaHood – except he is being charge $1250 a month instead of the former rent of $1 a year. https://blnnews.com/2023/05/01/will-council-vote-different-now-that-the-election-is-over/

Since the lessee is required to pay the taxes, Lahood should be paying – not the taxpayers of Normal.

1100 Beech St

Below is the GIS for 1100 Beech. Every property in this area is owned by some entity the Hile-Broads control. What is Normal paying?

1501 Warriner St

This address doesn’t exist in the County records:

303 and 305 Pine Street

This is the Sprague’s gas station leased to Teri Ryburn for $120 a year rent. She is liable for these taxes, Normal pays them anyway.

I emailed a question to Brian Day a few weeks ago and never received a response. I don’t see any reason to contact the “professional staff” again. You can try, but don’t expect an answer.