Mayor Christopher J. Clark warns that predominantly Black communities like Harvey are at risk of becoming ghost towns due to financial pressures.
The six-square-mile Chicago suburb of Harvey, Illinois, has a robust history rooted in Christian values, home ownership and temperance. Its founder, Turlington W. Harvey, was influenced by the Christian teachings of Dwight L. Moody, founder of the Moody Church. As a Temperance town, it was conceived, bankrolled, and populated by residents who adhered to a movement that promoted alcohol abstinence.
But Harvey underwent a profound transformation, as the African American population surged from 7 to 66%, and racial tensions flared. Amid the upheaval, Harvey lost its economic base when it bled jobs like other “Rust Belt” towns when steel and other related industries consolidated. Crime, unemployment, drug use and poverty surged—a familiar American tale.
As of 2022, the South Suburban city—once a haven for Black families seeking its greener pastures over urban living—had nearly 33% of its residents living below the poverty line, making it one of the poorest towns in the state.
With the August 1 deadline for the second installment of property tax payments looming, Harvey and 14 other communities have the highest median increases for Cook County suburbs this year. Moreover, 13 of those 15 municipalities are predominantly Black.
Because of this, Harvey’s Mayor Christopher J. Clark warns that his city, and others like it, face that proverbial existential crisis.
“If these taxes keep going up, people are going to move and leave their homes. They’re going to try to find greener pastures,” Clark told The Defender recently. “What it’s saying to me is that the vast majority of these Black communities will eventually become ghost towns, and that’s when the gentrification begins.”
During a recent interview, Clark spoke candidly about the challenges facing his community, highlighting the profound impact these tax increases have on predominantly African-American suburbs.
Harvey Mayor: A Dire Situation for Black Homeowners
Harvey Mayor Christopher J. Clark
Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas reported that the median tax bill increased by 19.9 percent. However, that burden on homeowners is disproportionately felt in areas like Harvey. The median increase is 82.18%, derived from the Cook County Assessor’s latest assessments.
These increases have resulted in a crushing obligation many residents cannot afford.
“If you have a $4,000 increase on your tax bill, you have to pay it within 30 days. The average Harveyite does not have $4,000 just lying around,” Clark said.
He said the property tax hike has some Harvey residents making trade-offs that no homeowner should have to face.
“When I say trade-off, I mean things such as, you know, regular necessities, prescriptions, things of that nature, not luxury items or something of the sort,” he said.
Clark clarified his statement when asked if the increases are forcing some Harvey residents to choose between paying their tax bill or buying food.
He added, “Food or property taxes, prescription medicine or property taxes, lights or property taxes.”
“I would say the vast majority of the property taxes, at least in Harvey, have gone up more than a normal bill, so that means that something has to be traded off,” he said.
An Inequitable Assessment Process
Clark also pointed out the disparities in the assessment process. The Cook County Assessor’s Office raised residential property values by 46%, while non-residential properties, specifically businesses, saw a 19% increase. However, the Cook County Board of Review reduced residential property assessments by only 1%, nullifying the increase for non-residential properties.
“There’s a business on a major thoroughfare in Harvey whose bill came down by $8,000 to $5,000, while a resident’s bill went from $6,000 to $10,000,” Clark stated, highlighting the imbalance that leaves homeowners bearing the brunt of the tax burden.
“We pay more as residential homeowners, and we don’t have businesses, so they pay less. And they actually have businesses that make money.”
Cook County Assessor Office Explains Reason Behind Tax Hikes
Pappas explained that this year’s record-high 19.9% increase in median homeowner tax bills in the south and southwest suburbs was due to two main factors: schools, municipalities and other taxing agencies requesting higher tax amounts and a reassessment process that shifted the tax burden from businesses to homeowners, impacting the overall tax rates for property owners.
The Cook County Assessor’s Office issued a statement explaining the rationale behind the assessments and the shift in tax burden toward homeowners:
The duty of the Cook County Assessor’s Office is to assess properties at their fair market value. These assessments are used to determine how the tax levy is divided up among the tax base.
In Cook County, the property tax system is zero-sum – a reduction in value for one kind of property means other properties must make up the difference.
Across the south and west suburbs, a systemic shift of the tax burden took place during the 2023 reassessment cycle: Commercial property owners received large value reductions on appeal from the Cook County Board of Review, a separate elected body from the CCAO.
Under the CCAO’s assessments, homeowners would have seen their share of assessed value drop from 68% to 67%. After appeals with the Board of Review, however, homeowners’ share instead increased to 71%.
These shifts took place in many south suburban municipalities with the county’s highest tax rates. In the village of Phoenix, for instance, homeowners’ share of the burden would have dropped to 75% under the CCAO’s assessments. After appeals with the Board of Review, this share increased to 84%.
In the south suburbs, home prices also increased significantly in the years before the reassessment. According to the price index released by the DePaul Institute for Housing Studies, prices in the south suburbs had some of the highest rates of growth in all of Cook County from 2020 to 2022.
Because the CCAO must capture fair market values, there were some south suburbs where homeowners saw their share of assessed value increase.
In Harvey, this share went from 48% to 53% under the CCAO’s assessments. But this change was doubled after appeals with the Board of Review, increasing further to 58%.
Currently, the CCAO encourages all homeowners to check the lower lefthand corner of their second installment property tax bills mailed by the Cook County Treasurer’s Office to ensure that they have all the exemptions they are entitled to.
If they are missing a property tax saving exemption that they are eligible for, the homeowner’s next step is to file for a certificate of error with the CCAO.
The Broader Impact on South Suburbs
This alarming trend is not confined to Harvey.
Other South Suburban communities have also experienced drastic tax hikes. Dixmoor leads with a 122.44% median increase, followed closely by Phoenix at 106.86%. These predominantly African American communities, with median incomes significantly below the national average, are struggling to cope with the financial demands.
For instance, with a median income of $24,491, Phoenix faces a tax increase of over 106%. Such steep hikes threaten the very fabric of these communities, pushing residents toward financial ruin and potential displacement.
Here are the suburbs ranked from highest to lowest for the median property tax percentage increase billed to homeowners, including the predominant racial and ethnic group and median household income* for each municipality:
- Dixmoor: 122.44% median increase
- Racial and Ethnic Demographic: Predominantly African-American
- Median Household Income: $57,823
- Phoenix: 106.86% median increase
- Racial and Ethnic Demographic: Predominantly African-American
- Median Household Income: $24,491
- Harvey: 82.18% median increase
- Racial and Ethnic Demographic: Predominantly African-American
- Median Household Income: $40,898
- Calumet Park: 72.15% median increase
- Racial and Ethnic Demographic: Predominantly African-American
- Median Household Income: $55,717
- Markham: 72.20% median increase
- Racial and Ethnic Demographic: Predominantly African-American
- Median Household Income: $47,955
- East Hazel Crest: 58.92% median increase
- Racial and Ethnic Demographic: Predominantly African-American
- Median Household Income: $53,346
- Thornton: 57.96% median increase
- Racial and Ethnic Demographic: Predominantly White
- Median Household Income: $65,714
- Park Forest: 55.99% median increase
- Racial and Ethnic Demographic: Predominantly African-American
- Median Household Income: $58,907
- Bedford Park: 49.07% median increase
- Racial and Ethnic Demographic: Predominantly White
- Median Household Income: $107,396
- Riverdale: 46.95% median increase
- Racial and Ethnic Demographic: Predominantly African-American
- Median Household Income: $41,144
- Glenwood: 41.31% median increase
- Racial and Ethnic Demographic: Predominantly African-American
- Median Household Income: $69,614
- Hazel Crest: 39.04% median increase
- Racial and Ethnic Demographic: Predominantly African-American
- Median Household Income: $57,247
- Richton Park: 39.14% median increase
- Racial and Ethnic Demographic: Predominantly African-American
- Median Household Income: $69,691
- Burnham: 36.37% median increase
- Racial and Ethnic Demographic: Predominantly African-American
- Median Household Income: $53,397
- Sauk Village: 25.91% median increase
- Racial and Ethnic Demographic: Predominantly African-American
- Median Household Income: $50,393
*Median Household Income figures courtesy of census.gov.
Call for Collective Action
Harvey, Illinois water tower (Credit: Citywide Services/Pinterest).
Mayor Clark is calling for South Suburban communities to collectively pledge to halt further tax increases and advocate for legislative reforms at the state and county levels.
“Maybe we need to adopt another type of system for our property taxes. I’m not sure what the fix is, but I know that what we have now is not working,” Clark said.
He specifically urges the 13 predominantly Black suburbs to join forces and push for systemic change.
“If all of our taxing districts within those 13 municipalities join and commit, and then we all come together, and we say to our state and county leaders, ‘Hey look, something needs to be done,’ it will make a difference,” he said.
“We’ll make a serious difference because we’re willing to put ourselves on the line and forgo an increase ourselves to demonstrate that we want to see this for our people, that we don’t want them to have to pay these high bills anymore.”
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