BEVERLY — A group of businesses on 103rd Street from Longwood Drive to Wood Street are working to expand their special taxing district by half a block on the north side of 103rd.
The district now stops at the Metra tracks on the north side of 103rd. It continues to Wood Street on the south side of the street, said Dr. Marcia Blake, an optometrist with a storefront at 1903 W. 103rd St.
Blake and others worked with the Beverly Area Planning Association to form the taxing district on Nov. 7, 2007. Officially known as Special Service Area No. 44, the district hopes to bring the north side of 103rd Street into the fold next year.
There are 53 similar taxing districts throughout the city with total budget of $24.5 million in 2015, according to Chicago's Department of Planning and Development.
In the 19th Ward alone, there are Special Service Areas in the shopping corridors on Western Avenue, 95th Street, 111th Street and at 99th Street and Walden Parkway.
The districts are funded by an additional property tax. The self-imposed tax is levied on all parcels within the district, according to Abe Lentner, a member of the planning association board.
This special tax usually amounts to about a 0.5 percent tacked onto the annual property tax bill. For the storefronts on 103rd Street, that ranges from $58 to $2,800 annually, though most medium-sized shops pay about $1,000 per year, Lentner said.
The association administers the funds from the 103rd Street businesses. Most of the money is used to pay for snow removal, spring plantings, holiday decorations and some joint advertising, Lentner said.
The organizers held their first meeting required to expand the district on Wednesday. A second meeting is set for 7 p.m. on May 14th in the association's community room at 11109 S. Longwood Drive in Morgan Park.
If all goes as planned, the expanded special service area will take shape in January and remain intact for the next 15 years, Lentner said.
During that time, commissioners of the taxing district will be able to amend the budget and change various parts of the program such as its snow removal provider or their joint advertising initiative, Lentner said.
He even said that the district could essentially opt to disband by reducing its budget to nothing — should that be the consensus.
But Margot Burke Holland, the new executive director at the planning association, doesn't expect that to be the case. She said there's been no push back on the plan to expand the taxing district and store owners seem satisfied with the services supplied under the existing agreement.
Holland said the association will continue to administer the taxing district, which is fairly labor intensive as it requires a high volume of filing to meet city guidelines.
"A lot of times, I think people ask, 'What does BAPA do?'" Holland said. "This is a good example."
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