The Will County Board reappointed just two of the three members to the Board of Review, which is responsible for hearing property tax appeals, amid concerns from some Lockport Township residents who believe more than 200 vacant lots were unfairly assessed.
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The Will County Board voted Thursday to deny the reappointment of the Board of Review’s chair, Susan McMillin, a member since 2009, but renewed the terms of Ann Crickman, a member since 2022, and Sue Smith, a member since 2019.
Members of the Board of Review are nominated by Will County Executive Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant and confirmed by the County Board. Their salaries range from $49,357 to $51,829 a year.
Residents of Lockport Township’s Fairmont community asked the board to vote against reappointing the Board of Review members, who have served for at least two years after their terms expired. The board postponed voting on the appointments last month.
Julie Connor said she grew concerned that 212 vacant lots owned by an investment group were given a substantial tax break in 2023 after appearing before the Board of Review. Connor, who has a certified Illinois assessment officer certificate, said the vacant properties stood out as unusual because they were granted an 81% property tax reduction from what the township assessor believed they were worth.
Delinda Herod, executive director of the Fairmont Community Partnership Group, said the area seeks fairness.
“I know there are many communities throughout Will County that face challenges; however, I am not aware of another community that has had to continually fight as many battles as Fairmont simply to receive fair, equal treatment,” Herod said.
Herod said her family owns a vacant lot and paid $489.66 in property taxes in 2025, while the neighboring lot paid $60.18.
“That is a difference of $429.48 on two vacant lots sitting side by side,” she said. “I am aware of other vacant lots with annual taxes as low as $18. And this is not an isolated issue involving one parcel. This tax treatment has been applied to hundreds of vacant lots in and around our community while the people who actually live in Fairmont continue to pay more than their fair share.”
Little or nothing has been done to correct the inequity, resident Paula Leonard said.
“Why are the residents in Fairmont picking up the property tax tab for an investor?” she said.
Dale Butalla, Will County’s supervisor of assessments, said the investment group CC Rider Enterprises – Fairmont was the only one to appeal their assessments after the quadrennial reassessment, in which the total market value of the land was assessed at about $3 million, up from less than $500,000 the year prior.
When they filed the complaint with the Board of Review, the investor group said they were assessed too high based on comparable sales, Butalla said.
The Board of Review looked at evidence presented by both the investment group and the township assessor and lowered the assessment, but not to the level the investment group had requested, Butalla said. The taxes in 2023 for the vacant land were higher than those issued in 2022, he said.
During the appeal process, the township assessor has to defend an assessment, while the Board of Review acts as a quasi-judicial body to make a decision based upon the evidence presented, Butalla said.
“The board felt that the property owner was persuasive enough in their argument,” he said.
After the vote on the Board of Review reappointments, Bertino-Tarrant issued a statement saying, “Unfortunately, a combination of false accusations and misunderstandings led to the removal of the most experienced member of the Board of Review. I am, of course, disappointed in the outcome.”
Connor said the Board of Review has a complicated job, but the Will County Board’s actions shows state law has to be followed and taxes need to be applied uniformly. She said she is glad county officials took the Fairmont community concerns seriously.
“I think it sends a strong message things need to change,” Connor said. “Property taxes have to be fair and uniform.”
Herod said she feels not reappointing the chair was a win for residents.
“We will continue to advocate for Fairmont,” she said.
Will County Board member Jackie Traynere, a Bolingbrook Democrat who voted against the reappointment of all three Board of Review members, said she wants accountability for the property tax inequities. She also said the County Board’s vote sends a message.
For at least two years, the residents of the Fairmont community have brought their concerns to the County Board, Traynere said. Adjustments on their assessments could have been done, she said.
“The injured people are the residents in Fairmont,” Traynere said.
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Board member Frankie Pretzel, on the other hand, said he was concerned the County Board was looking for a reason to kick people off the Board of Review and start anew, and he didn’t feel it was fair.
“I haven’t heard evidence that these three people have done anything wrong,” Pretzel, a New Lenox Republican, said.
Despite not being reappointed, McMillin will serve until she is replaced, said Mike Theodore, a spokesman for the county executive’s office. The Board of Review is within the 30-day window where property tax owners can file complaints about their township assessment. Those complaints will be heard by the Board of Review starting when the window closes Sept. 14 through the end of the year, he said.
Bertino-Tarrant has to coordinate with the Illinois Department of Revenue to administer a qualifying test that is required for anyone interested in serving on the Board of Review. She also plans to meet with County Board leadership to determine what other qualifications they would like to see in the next appointment, Theodore said.
Butalla said no County Board member reached out in the last month to discuss the Board of Review appointments despite the appointments being tabled in July.
The Will County Board of Review last year received just fewer than 1,700 complaints from residents against their assessment, Theodore said. Fewer Will County residents appeal Board of Review decisions to the State Property Tax Appeal Board in the Chicago area than those in Lake or Kane counties.
Bertino-Tarrant has offered to meet with Fairmont residents to assuage concerns, Theodore said.
Michelle Mullins is a freelance reporter.