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Download a copy of Tasty Dog's lease
A bargain is in the works for the Village of Oak Park to help save a local hot dog restaurant. And it appears that taxpayers won't need to dish out cold cash to make it happen.
Tasty Dog, at 708 Lake, was jolted a year ago when owners received property tax bills that dated back to 2003, when the restaurant opened, and which totaled $120,000. The fast-food eatery is in a village-owned building that is tax exempt, so the owners had believed that they would be free from paying dues on the property.
But little did they know that Cook County taxes the leases of for-profit businesses renting space in tax-exempt government buildings. So now Tasty Dog is asking its landlord, the village, for help in resolving its tax bill. In an interview last month, owner Michael Barton said the restaurant would close without assistance.
The village has worked out a deal to present to Tasty Dog sometime this week, according to village trustee Glenn Brewer, who is on a two-member subcommittee of the village board tasked with helping the restaurant. Brewer declined to provide specifics but did say that Oak Park would not dish out cash to help foot the bill.
"It's a proposal for a mix of things that we hope will put the village and Tasty Dog in a pretty good position going forward, understanding the economic circumstances that the owners are in," Brewer said.
The full board discussed the proposal in a closed meeting July 27 and will wait until Tasty Dog gives its reaction to make it public, Brewer said.
In an interview last month, trustee Jon Hale said the only likely solution for Tasty Dog's problem is discounting its rent to help owners make the tax payments.
Tasty Dog was nearly forced out of business in 2001 when a developer and the village planned to build on the restaurant's former location across the street. Oak Park threatened to condemn the property at 701 Lake.
But after a public outcry to save the hot dog stand, the village bought the parcel of land under Tasty Dog's old home and helped fund the construction of a new location. The hot dog stand then started renting the new space from the village in 2003 at a cost of $6,000 a month, which was increased to $6,600 in 2007.
Owners thought the business would have the same lease arrangement as in the previous location - without having to pay property taxes.
The taxes were not addressed in the lease, according to a copy obtained by Wednesday Journal, though it's unclear why. The village manager (Carl Swenson) and development director (Mike Chen) at the time have since left the village. Village Attorney Ray Heise could not be reached for comment late Monday afternoon.
According to Illinois statues, when a lease is signed in a tax-exempt property, it's the responsible of the property owner (in this case the Village of Oak Park) to file a copy of the lease with the county to be taxed. But Tasty Dog says it didn't start getting bills until August 2008, fives years after it opened.
When a copy isn't filed, the lone way the county can find out about taxable leases is if someone complains, said Oak Park Township Assessor Ali ElSaffar.
The only recourse the county might have in collecting the unpaid taxes is suing Tasty Dog. The county couldn't take away the property because it's owned by the village.
"Ordinarily the county has a huge hammer over people," ElSaffar said. "If you don't pay your $5,000 bill on your $200,000 home, they could take it away, which is a huge incentive. The only thing it appears they could do is file a lawsuit."
CONTACT: mstempniak@wjinc.com
