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Committee discusses seeking voluntary PILOT from the Gables after review of tax-exempt properties
Summary
Staff identified existing pilot agreements that generate revenue and estimated a voluntary pilot with the Gables could yield roughly $168,000 a year depending on reassessment and negotiation; village attorney said any pilot would be voluntary and post-hoc negotiations may be necessary.
Committee members discussed tax-exempt properties and possibilities for payments in lieu of taxes (PILOTs). Matthew said the village currently has two pilot agreements: Fairway Knoll (about $226,000 annually) and Life Church (capped at $10,000). Using the Gables' last known assessed value (2018) and the average assessed-value increases since then, staff estimated a potential PILOT could generate roughly $168,000 per year depending on the property's current assessment and reassessment schedule.
Village attorney Sajak told trustees legal leverage is limited after a property has become tax-exempt by operation of law; PILOTs beyond those already agreed to generally require voluntary negotiations with property owners. He and staff discussed alternatives municipal governments around the state have considered, including establishing service-level chargebacks (for ambulance/paramedic calls beyond a standard response) or other user-fee approaches, but stressed such ideas vary in legality and local precedent and would need further study.
Trustees asked staff to gather additional usage data (fire/ambulance call volumes to the Gables) and to consult with the fire chief on feasible per-call fees and with the contracted advisory firm (Baird) for negotiating precedent. Staff said the fire department has already done some call-volume analysis and the village president/administrator will likely initiate outreach to the Gables about voluntary negotiations.
What happens next: staff will research call-volume data, discuss options with the fire chief, and pursue outreach steps as appropriate; any negotiated PILOT would be voluntary and require agreement by the property owner.
