The Pilsen Industrial Corridor Tax Increment Financing (TIF) district would be expanded to increase financial support for Lower West Side property owners and small businesses under a proposal introduced to City Council today by Mayor Brandon Johnson.

The expanded boundaries would add 685 acres to the 907-acre district, enabling TIF support for the community’s main commercial and residential areas for the first time. The proposed expansion area incorporates approximately 6,140 properties, including more than 100 city blocks generally bounded by 16th Street, Western Avenue, Desplaines Street, and portions of Blue Island Avenue and 21st Street.

The Pilsen TIF was established in 1998 primarily to support business and public infrastructure located within the Pilsen Industrial Corridor and on adjacent blocks.

The TIF amendment would directly address affordability and displacement concerns involving the neighborhood’s primarily Mexican-American residents and businesses through a redevelopment plan budget increase from $115 million to $980 million, which would be allocated through programs such as the Department of Planning and Development’s Small Business Improvement Fund and the Department of Housing’s Neighborhood Improvement Program, among other measures. The funding increase would also be made available for job training, day care services, public works improvements, and other eligible costs.

In 2022, the district’s 24-year term was extended for an additional 12 years.

The City’s TIF program uses incremental property growth within a district’s boundaries to support private and public improvements.