A.D. Quig, Author at Illinois Answers Project

Data Centers and Tax Breaks: How We Reported the Story

by Alex Nitkin and A.D. Quig August 23, 2026August 31, 2026

The Illinois Answers Project and Chicago Tribune used third-party databases, county records and municipal sources in Elk Grove Village and Northlake to compile a list of data centers in Cook […]

An airplane flies near the EdgeConneX data center campus, right, on July 22, 2026, in Elk Grove Village. Two of the company’s data centers near O’Hare International Airport were the subject of property tax appeals battles this year brought by the Cook County assessor. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)

Government Finance & Accountability

Data Centers Near O’Hare Win Nearly $100M in Local Tax Breaks, Leaving Suburban Homeowners to Cover the Gap

by Alex Nitkin and A.D. Quig August 23, 2026August 26, 2026

Northwest suburban data centers had nearly $2 billion knocked off their taxable property values, an Illinois Answers Project/Chicago Tribune analysis shows.

Melvin Brooks' house in Bellwood on Friday. As of last week, nearly 2,900 second installment bills that were supposed to go out last November were still unsent — including the bungalow pastor Melvin Brooks has owned since 1982. (Credit: Josh Boland/Chicago Tribune)

Government Finance & Accountability

Months After Late Property Tax Bills, Thousands Are Still Waiting With No Resolution in Sight

by A.D. Quig and Alex Nitkin April 26, 2026April 25, 2026

County officials and are piling blame on their beleaguered technology vendor over a deluge of outstanding issues that have also delayed refunds for ten of thousands

Audrey Pierce, 71, stands by her three-flat in North Lawndale on Sunday. She saw her property tax bill for the building more than double this year. “To put it mildly, I’m very pissed off,” she said. (Credit: Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)

Follow-Up

Record Property Tax Increases Slam Chicago Homeowners as Downtown Owners See Cuts

by A.D. Quig and Alex Nitkin November 17, 2025November 17, 2025

Sinking Loop office values fuel spike in Chicago residential bills, especially on South, West sides, report shows.

Residential properties throughout the South and West sides, like these shown on Sept. 18, 2025, on West End Avenue in West Garfield Park, had their property assessments double or even triple last year. Those higher assessments will likely help trigger steep hikes in property tax bills for homeowners in the neighborhoods. Experts, and officials with the Cook County assessor's office that produced the new figures, said the higher valuations are being partly driven by investors who have flocked to the few neighborhoods where real estate is still affordable.

Investigations

Brace For Impact: Tax Hikes Loom For South, West Side Homeowners

by A.D. Quig and Alex Nitkin September 21, 2025September 26, 2025

Property assessments double for 37,000 homes in Chicago’s historically neglected neighborhoods amid fresh investor interest.

Raphael Espinoza, left, and Skylar Damiano play with their cat, Patch, in the kitchen of their Humboldt Park home on March 6, 2025. For about two and a half years, the two have lived in their newly constructed house, which has been taxed erroneously as a vacant side lot. The assessor's office assured them the property assessment will be updated and they won't be back taxes. (John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune)

Investigations

Cook County Assessor Fixes Hundreds of Misclassified Properties Following Illinois Answers-Tribune Investigation

by Alex Nitkin and A.D. Quig March 16, 2025March 16, 2025

The corrections have put nearly half a billion dollars in taxable real estate value back on the rolls.

Denise Gilmore sits on the front porch of her Humboldt Park home with granddaughters, Mylah Collins, 4, left, and Capri Douglas, 2, on June 7, 2024. (Vincent Alban/Chicago Tribune)

Investigations

Luxury Home or Vacant Lot? Cook County Assessor Misclassifies Hundreds of Properties, Missing $444M in One Year Alone

by Alex Nitkin, A.D. Quig and Cam Rodriguez, The New York Times August 4, 2024August 28, 2024

An investigation by Illinois Answers Project and the Chicago Tribune found Assessor Fritz Kaegi’s office missed critical data from at least 620 properties in 2023, with big implications for those taxpayers.

The office of Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi on June 17, 2024. The Chicago Tribune and Illinois Answers Project set out to investigate the accuracy of property assessments in Cook County. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)

Investigations

How We Reported on Cook County Assessment Errors

by Alex Nitkin, A.D. Quig and Cam Rodriguez, The New York Times August 4, 2024August 4, 2024

Reporters from Illinois Answers Project and the Chicago Tribune collected and analyzed thousands of points of data to track down where the Cook County assessor misclassified hundreds of properties.