Appellate court unanimously affirms Winfield’s TIF 2; board urges moving forward on Town Center

A three-judge panel of the Third District Appellate Court issued a unanimous decision on Feb. 4 affirming the DuPage County Circuit Court’s March 2025 summary judgment that Winfield’s Tax Increment Financing district known as TIF 2 met statutory requirements, Village Attorney Dave Freeman (S2) told the Village Board on Feb. 5.

Freeman summarized the opinion, saying the appellate court agreed the village satisfied the TIF Act’s “but-for” test — finding that the development agreement at issue was entered into as part of the decision to form TIF 2 and showed the district was necessary to enable the project. He also said the court rejected arguments that every parcel must show individual substantial benefit, instead concluding the property as a whole must benefit. On conservation-area eligibility, Freeman said the court found the statute does not require parcels to contain structures and that the village’s designation met the statutory threshold.

“The appellate court affirmed the judgment of the circuit court as I indicated unanimously on all issues,” Freeman said, summarizing holdings on contiguity, conservation-area factors and parcel transfers between TIF districts.

Board members and residents who spoke at the meeting welcomed the ruling as an opportunity to move forward with long-delayed Town Center projects. A trustee (S3) characterized the decision as “unanimous” and asked whether the ruling signaled a strong judgment in the village’s favor; Freeman said it did and noted the school districts could still petition the Illinois Supreme Court but that the chance the court would accept the case is low.

President Zornetz (S1) framed the ruling as a chance to restart work on a set of projects the village has planned for Town Center: construction of a new village hall and police station and support for the Winfield Reserve residential development, which Freeman and the president said would add 147 units. Zornetz also said the village will post the appellate opinion to the municipal website for residents to read.

Several trustees and speakers highlighted the litigation’s fiscal impact. One trustee (S8) told the board the lawsuit “cost taxpayers somewhere between 7 and $8,000,000,” and President Zornetz said the village had incurred “$2,000,000 in direct expenditures and over $6,000,000 in higher labor, construction, and borrowing cost to town center projects.” Those figures were presented as the village’s assessment of the litigation’s total cost; the board urged school districts and other taxing bodies to accept the ruling and work in partnership going forward.

The board said the TIF decision removes a legal obstacle to the town center plan and could free the village to seek new development and infrastructure without raising property taxes. Freeman cautioned only that the school districts retain the right to file a petition to the state Supreme Court within 35 days of the appellate order, but he described the likelihood that the Supreme Court would accept such a petition as low.

The board’s discussion ended with members expressing hope the ruling will allow Winfield to move ahead on development that trustees say would benefit students, families and local businesses without further delay.