A bitter dispute between Northwestern University and the Chicago suburb of Evanston is finally being brought to court. The city has decided to create a historic district that would encompass parts of Northwestern, thereby allowing the city to collect property taxes from the school - a tax the university is not required to give to the city, according to a Supreme Court ruling made over 125 years ago. Northwestern is fighting the decision, and The Spectrum feels Evanston is trying to get the school's money for all the wrong reasons.
The historic district was part of a 2000 Evanston ordinance, which would allow the city to take control of dozens of the college's private buildings, and Northwestern's lawsuit to fight the plan is scheduled for March, according to an article on CNN.com.
Many homeowners in Evanston feel the university should be paying property taxes so the continuing tax increases will not solely be on their shoulders.
Northwestern is not totally tax-exempt, however, as the school pays over four million in taxes already for various services and utilities, said Alan Cubbage, vice president for university relations, in the CNN.com article.
It is understandable why the city of Evanston would want Northwestern to pay property tax. It doesn't seem fair for the school not to pay the constantly increasing taxes when everyone else has to. Paying the property tax would also justify the amount of land the university takes up. The presence of the college wastes the land that the city could use to build taxable homes and businesses.
However, to counter the lack of tax revenue given to the city, Northwestern's students and faculty instead pour millions into Evanston's businesses. A steady influx of business for the city is definitely more viable and stable than taxes, which could be used in a less than beneficial manner by the government.
The money needed to pay the property tax, should the school be forced to pay, would have to come from somewhere and in all likelihood it would come from the school's budget. With a lessened budget, many teachers and faculty will more than likely have their jobs frozen or even be laid-off. The tax will also affect academic and recreational spending which will ultimately hurt the students' college experience.
Making Northwestern part of a historical district may also hamper development on the campus. A college campus constantly needs construction and alterations in order to better accommodate the constant flow of students, and at UB, we know that better than anyone. If some of Northwestern's buildings were made historical, the school would not be able to remodel or do any renovation whatsoever on them, since the buildings would have to be preserved in their current state and untouched for the visual benefit of future generations. Residence halls and a gymnasium, built in the 1970s and 1980s respectively, lie in the proposed historical district when clearly buildings of this age should not be categorized as "historical."
Evanston's decision to attempt to tax Northwestern is a poorly thought out way to earn revenue. The school draws thousands of students and faculty to the suburban town, all of whom are helping the city's economy. Evanston needs to learn how to reach an appropriate compromise with Northwestern, because neither side will benefit if their feud is not resolved.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
