, 1869-04-06
CITY. TAXATION.
Report OF the Finance Commit"
tee OF the Common
Councils
Answer to Alderman Sharidan's Re
cent Communication.


Facts and FIgureo.
Tho following report Of the Committee On II.
nance Of tho Common coonca, In answe1 to oom-
c1t5 taxation. ETC., waa handel tn It the meeting
Of the Council Last evening, but ewing to tho psess
OF othc7 business and an carly adjournment WIS
not rad ur acted upon
TEE AErpEr.
Tcur Committee On Finance, to whom wns re-
fe1Ecd = communication from AID Sheridan IN r.
launn 70 city ts1Ation and the appantment Of .
City Auditor, beg leave to report: TEE oommuo(-
cation sets forth 4n Almost universal o1tc7y
Is Ths Gaap epG0
nul ltLere to exist 10 any Considerable extent bT
the=e rho pay the ns,k of 1axrs, and Il toeJ e1-
tss = Without good ioundatao9 in reason; and ai
ara Of territory TO care for, and ns many inhaAt.
1ants. where the taxes arc - low as they arc In
ms e!1yi ~ ~ M1s ons aSe Ses1tosy Of eaeap prop
miles o. liver to be bdged OF tunneI]ed, o,tr fapld
demand for expensive school accommodations
Es [,srsnt nrHes snch hnsse ness. s.:; sna i,Es
fur squAre ni1es Of territory: With our extensive
watc1, seweEaee, tunnel and canal Improvements,
sanitary md natbot ootlayA Ill rapldls snd posi-
tFGJ dc1nnnded-wuulI eetru to Indicate AMI de-
mand much higher taI1fion even than our older
cities that have groEn up Gradually during the hfe
~ ngnsd N ths days nna ha o.
IN territory only the size OF South Chicago, Hnd
hAd in 1sG7, 9s 900 tnhn,sants: for thAt year her
1otal valuation for taxes VA II the selling price OF
property, and was $t4o 900 90, on which tax MAS
1e,ied ot l5 mills On the dollar, giving seven and
. quarter millions OF Income from this souESe
s!e1s Besides H. t1s sny a'9 Tnt ss
a Il ceono.n:., @ be4ne:r.ey 1 l.d | ~ OF Il nris
on the dollar upon property yAiuatton 81 fs2',
source OF r. 80 co., naA increased that amount TO
-, ,ooo, COZ for the year 1858. In Drooxtyn the
same sats ot T. ecoooay aad fa3aaan n M satsss ne!ns
rate In EhiafelFhia waf four per cent whilst many
OF the smaller cities arc fur atoEe Chcayo III tax
1asnias COUNTIES ID lis - vel a. Other ss;e de
rates being from three TO seven per Cent in many
towns bordering on the hte in Michigan and Wis
cons1u-
The next effort Is At dguses and deductions fnbu-
loas to behold, but astounding only tn the pre-
sumption and unscrupufous assertions Of EVERY
al there hut one fart, and thai Is that Chicago
contains twenty square miles but With ths /;
assu11ea al 10 te iaIsb4s area, which l. not uae
Ii m error or s,ly S.Aeoa, 40. We deduct for
the Chicago River, its branches, canals and alps,
one square lille; for lands exempt by law ffpm
ta1aton-eenools COLLEGES, university, city, coun'
limos % ceatSsl 1Ea,road School isaas ieasea'
as,iuus. hospitals, 4c.-ove1 one square mile.
lie next assumes The ~ square Mles to contain
each s,40 ordinary building lots. or IN all l6s sG1
lo.4- Let us nee In the Scnoo! Section there are
1<a b'oesx The best la!d out one, to make The
roe State and Dearborn Etrects, and it has IS ots
9o1l9o feet-bot the ordinary size of baildtng lots
ns woYla gys l9ts Y san1Fe ns out 1ns
opJ 4 NN 4tTeet front lots, or 4s9f 10 the section
tsquazc mc], being $50 10 lso feet deep as Is much
property T. the 81 &G1sy: 50 that IVY @ lots + 70 tue
nonA Of ta4allo Area k.Iss 10000 lots which
shoWa slight destation from the fact, and nj
his price, Stb673 per lot iths, Of cour5c, must be
vAln 1f Af,htf II ha
amount Ut this e11H being much nearer
the real full vslne Of ali taxAbse rea, and personal
properly ~ Chicago. than any ngases n GiFes are
TO the facts in the case But the iuftJ tuuhlng il
found In his table Of elasses and prices He Gtsez
1GS a6a IoIk 1t g. f5G e each, Til Goa tho
yatae Q. The ground: Y Glasses md psiees = tol
per lot, one-eght At 20 per foot Or $3.50 par lot
oneei9htn a. ~ per foot, nr &l,oSo per lot; one
sishn 81 - t pe5 dos Se per ,ot
Per foot or 01 per lot: oneeixhtn as$4d per foo
o. 80 90 psI lot and one eighth u ssN peE toos O
5S 3sSt eSs r nt4 fa = average OF sd PEI
B5 M lis we ieaTn list Ii. sots are tvcnty-nve fee
'front.' and thus VIC give his error onenl,h hess thar
But he ksys: '.1et US take 900 fee, ol frontage
a4ter nsk1ng allowance for opentngA Ac, lvc1
iberal, these being actuaily only about s,eot,oot
result Your committee .ilf1eT, and ,lakc The sur
Of HI onr ata:1n<ns s. .e3h s,', ,os-sein2 e1rn1
Of Snly ss1, s 6 l9nr i1 tines .ae r.
I real foil value. lie says he has put his price,
very low, and his lowest Is so per foot for tarcs
square mics; Had The Alderman been an appll
cant to purchase fCw sections at the time thi
assessment WAS 1nsde Mt half thai rzure, s. pc
foot, he could hase done 80, End ne viii mcntlol
r. ,Ss sete e.,f Es; ~ " q Section. 81 saa i ~
II. The northwest qaa1er ot secslo,
& aR& q sssa ass sa e Il = ssuss g 81
r1untnR around the city tu 6edKHtck street on II
North Side. THIS being suburban property, an
being nsseed At from Il to 8 pcr frvnt foot only
Will probably aver7gt In the assessed LIST TO n
front foot This Is one-sdIth Of h1a to;a! property
and would be worth, 70 oascss hy these figures, 81
PEI fooL reEnaps his constituents wosla like t
be assessed At hts figures
Again, he assumes one-eishth or three slaar
miles 70 Be worth 1870 PCT front foot Your com
worth $40 per front loot, aud II my ON
cAu Ind It they would be Pleaset! to harl
II pointed out The best mile sq1aEe tn tae city /
and the like In this there mr. q few-Perh2p
tNelve-corner lots. worth fun !. 81 to IS sp p.
frnnt foot tnonc estr sold for $4,000: but IN TIT
mile you can purchase 1ous tlInrs twelve iots =
from t6n 10 SO lNf loot. and tie are:age Is no
%5o0 per foot: prpllahl5 $ip er foot ia nbous tn,
real n.esase- No other square mile can be fonnt
worth over <1sn per foot nos Ii which more or les
cannot te purchased 4. from ~ t. 3o5s nnl tn
third square mile Ia not worth over SloJ a. q!
ave1age-naknR slight crruF In his lals th-c
Items II as least $so er oda, or s.4opoovN In hi
prices Alonc-
Iiul hM error, OF eon,stainS wo:sc, comes l.
ixslTe Instead u th1cc nlltlons a surplus oi MIN
III fE7snae tassea and JuaesuS traR complain,
When theAlde1mau pcuued this buncombe he kne
that the assessed and returned value Of the enttl
TX on this of fourteen mills On the dollar, abo7
ta.eanoou lie kne,c this to be the entrt levy Il
city purposes; he krr'r btu p eta, ,00 satpfua 10
entirely s7oundiess, and rFunanl1 1nale the sts3
FIR f11tFc2t AfLcf SEUt1np b