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Record of Proceedings

Cook County Land Bank FY2026 Mid-Year Budget Presentation - July 21, 2026

Board of Commissioners — Tuesday, July 21, 2026
BodyCook County, Illinois
SessionBoard of Commissioners
DateTuesday, July 21, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 36:03

Transcript — Verbatim
0:01

Mr.

0:01

Sure, we'll resume.

0:03

The Cook County Land Bank.

0:05

Jessica.

0:06

Jessica.

0:13

Good afternoon, Chairman Daly, Commissioners.

0:16

Thank you for the opportunity to present the Cook County Land Bank's fiscal year 2026 mid-year budget template.

0:24

I'm joined today by Daniel Taylor, our manager of finance and business operations, who will walk us through our expenditures following my revenue overview, and Alex Simmons, our senior planning analyst.

0:36

Before we get into the numbers, I want to note that the land bank continues to operate by generating revenue through property sales, land banking agreements, and municipal transactions while advancing our core mission of returning vacant and abandoned property back into productive use across Cook County.

0:55

This builds on real momentum.

0:58

Last year we announced our highest revenue ever since 2018, generating 9.6 million in 2025.

1:07

And now we've generated $309 million in community wealth to date.

1:14

This year our projections are lower due to some challenges.

1:17

However, our fiscal year 2026 expenditures are tracking within budget across every category.

1:24

Next slide, please.

1:27

Okay.

1:28

Next this the agenda slide.

1:31

Okay.

1:32

So we're going to talk about revenues.

1:34

We have no ARPA dollars in our expenditures.

1:36

Next slide, please.

1:37

Revenue.

1:39

We've generated about $4 million against a $7 million annual goal, which is 57% of our target, with the positive variance of $887,000 as of May 31st, 2026.

1:53

This variance is a good variance.

1:55

It's not a shortfall.

1:56

Revenue is coming in ahead of projection, driven by our strategic focus in our increasing sales and reducing our departmental expenditures.

2:06

Our revenue mix consists of property sales, which are the primary driver, supplemented by miscellaneous income, then land banking agreements and municipal transactions.

2:18

For this, we credit Calumet City, the City of Chicago, Dalton, and Madison, in which we've conducted municipal sales this year, and we have a land banking agreement with the CTA red line.

2:32

We are on pace and it's not a projection.

2:34

We're on pace against our fiscal year 2026 goal with a positive variance to date.

2:45

Next slide.

2:52

Thank you, Jessica.

2:54

FY26 land bank fiscal year to date department expenditures listed are overall on pace in all categories.

3:02

The first category are expenditure line personnel.

3:06

The 20% variance is due to four positions not yet filled.

3:10

We are currently in process for those positions to be posted.

3:14

The next category is our operations and maintenance line, which is dedicated for our property maintenance landscape and needs related to our property inventory.

3:24

Additionally, seasonal factors creates natural lags as we transition from winter maintenance activities into spring cleanup.

3:31

The natural growing season also affects it, which typically occurs uh in April and May.

3:37

The primary reason for this low spend uh stems from our billing cycles as we receive invoices one month behind the actual service date uh uh versus delivery dates.

3:46

The land bank expects to catch up and meet our budget projections by 11.30.

3:51

The next line, the largest uh variance and expenditure is the contingencies and special purpose line, which includes department spend of $650,000 and a credit appropriation transfer in the amount of $3.5 million.

4:05

Um these combine uh produce a credit that you'll see there of $2.8 million.

4:11

This uh appropriation transfer came from the Department of Budget and Finance to support our operations, uh Department expenditures as a special purpose fund.

4:21

This line also represents many other expenditure categories, including our line of credit reserve, funds reserved for delinquent taxes, interest for our line of credit, our professional service line, survey reports, and scaffolding.

4:33

Overall, the land bank senior management continues to actively monitor department spending to ensure we are aligned with our projections by 1130.

4:42

Next slide, please.

4:47

Um, the land bank has no ARPA funding, so we can go to the next slide, please.

4:54

Now we want to talk about our fiscal year 2026 initiatives and our goal.

5:00

Our first goal represents the percentage of properties sold for home ownership.

5:03

89% of our properties sold this fiscal year have gone to home ownership.

5:09

And this covers all non-commercial industrial sales.

5:12

This is the core of what the land bank does and what we exist to do.

5:17

We convert these vacant tax delinquent properties into pathways to homeownership and generational wealth for Cook County residents.

5:24

This ties directly to the policy roadmap as it's the metric that supports vital communities, which centers homeownership as a wealth building tool while discouraging rental conversion of these properties.

5:42

I also would like to thank the President Prequinal's Equity Fund, who has contributed to 132 families to date.

5:58

Because of this large majority of these properties go to homeowners rather than investor, the equity created stays with the resident and it stays with the neighborhood.

6:07

This doesn't flow outside of the community.

6:10

That is a direct link between this homeownership rate and the community wealth figure on the next slide.

6:16

One is the mechanism and the other is the measurable result.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Affordable Housing█████████████████████████████29%
Community Engagement█████████████████████████25%
Budget Equity Analysis████████████████████████24%
Property Management██████████████████████22%
Summary of Proceedings

Cook County Land Bank FY2026 Mid-Year Budget Presentation - July 21, 2026

Jessica, Executive Director of the Cook County Land Bank Authority (CCLBA), presented the fiscal year 2026 mid-year budget to the Cook County Board Commissioners, joined by Daniel Taylor (Manager of Finance and Business Operations) and Alex Simmons (Senior Planning Analyst). The presentation covered revenues, expenditures, initiatives, and challenges, followed by questions and comments from commissioners.

Discussion Items

  • Revenue Overview: As of May 31, 2026, CCLBA generated $4 million against a $7 million annual target (57% of goal), with a positive variance of $887,000. Revenue is ahead of projection due to increased sales and reduced departmental expenditures. Revenue sources include property sales (primary driver), land banking agreements, and municipal transactions with Calumet City, Chicago, Dalton, and Madison, plus a land banking agreement with the CTA Red Line.
  • Expenditures: Overall on pace in all categories. Personnel had a 20% variance due to four unfilled positions (currently being posted). Operations and maintenance showed lower spending due to seasonal billing cycles (invoices one month behind), but expected to meet projections by November 30, 2026. The contingencies and special purpose line included a $650,000 department spend and a $3.5 million credit appropriation transfer from Budget and Finance, resulting in a net credit of $2.8 million. No ARPA funds were used.
  • Homeownership and Community Wealth: 89% of properties sold this fiscal year went to homeownership, the core mission. Since inception, CCLBA has generated $309 million in community wealth (difference between acquisition cost and post-rehab market value). This aligns with the county's policy roadmap for vital communities.
  • Acquisitions and Inventory: 256 parcels acquired this fiscal year (51% of original 500 goal), but acquisitions are expected to slow due to higher redemptions; full-year projection is 400 parcels. The aging inventory was reduced by 10.7% from December 2025 to May 2026. CCLBA typically requests 3,000 certificates annually to achieve a net inventory of 600.
  • Staffing: 21 active employees with four vacancies; three additional asset managers are sought. The county allocated six new positions last year to support scaling.
  • Challenges: Tyler Technologies system issues are causing delays in processing refunds and exemptions, with $1 million owed to CCLBA from the treasurer and assessor. Commissioner Gaynor highlighted the need to process 3,000 properties per year to sustain operations.
  • Grants: CCLBA applied for $750,000 from IHDA's Strong Communities Program (Round 3) for demolition of properties beyond repair. They were previously awarded $562,000. Only technical assistance grants for brownfield remediation have been identified so far.
  • Enforcement and Sales Process: CCLBA uses a $20,000 mortgage clause to ensure buyers complete rehabilitation within 12-18 months. Asset managers inspect for permits before release. Time to market is approximately 60 days after acquisition, with an additional three months to contract and three months to close. The process includes monthly application reviews and title/water certificate checks.
  • Partnerships: CCLBA works with municipalities (e.g., Dalton with 400 delinquent properties, Calumet City on an industrial property, Madison on mall parcels) and transfers properties to the South Suburban Land Bank for profit sharing. Nonprofits are prioritized via land banking agreements.
  • Budget and Funding: The total operating budget is approximately $14 million. CCLBA receives $3.5 million annually from the county, with the remainder from revenue (highest was $9.6 million in FY2025). Commissioner Gaynor noted that most land banks nationally receive a portion of tax increment, which CCLBA does not, and that the $3.5 million is a fraction of the taxes generated by CCLBA (approximately $720,000 in current budget).

Key Outcomes

  • No formal votes were taken; the presentation was informational and advisory.
  • Commissioners expressed strong support and gratitude for CCLBA's work, particularly in homeownership, community wealth, and partnerships. Commissioner Lower thanked Jessica for assisting the Black Fire Brigade in housing for youth. Commissioner Moore requested data on total properties returned to productive use (2,505 to date) and tax value increases ($38 million in taxes generated, plus $37.5 million from redemptions due to take notices).
  • Commissioner Basquez highlighted successful enforcement against a non-compliant buyer and thanked Kevin Garvey for assistance. Commissioner Chavez asked about partnerships for maintenance and inventory returns to municipalities.
  • Concerns were raised about Tyler Technologies delays and the need for a solution to keep land bank operations moving. Chairman Daly noted the county is working with all agencies to resolve the issue.
  • Jessica indicated that CCLBA is scaling developers from small rehabs to new construction, with 65% of inventory now vacant land. Additional resources, especially for preservation services ($6 million annually to maintain 2,000 properties), would allow further impact.
  • The meeting concluded with no further questions.

Meeting Transcript

Mr. Sure, we'll resume. The Cook County Land Bank. Jessica. Jessica. Good afternoon, Chairman Daly, Commissioners. Thank you for the opportunity to present the Cook County Land Bank's fiscal year 2026 mid-year budget template. I'm joined today by Daniel Taylor, our manager of finance and business operations, who will walk us through our expenditures following my revenue overview, and Alex Simmons, our senior planning analyst. Before we get into the numbers, I want to note that the land bank continues to operate by generating revenue through property sales, land banking agreements, and municipal transactions while advancing our core mission of returning vacant and abandoned property back into productive use across Cook County. This builds on real momentum. Last year we announced our highest revenue ever since 2018, generating 9.6 million in 2025. And now we've generated $309 million in community wealth to date. This year our projections are lower due to some challenges. However, our fiscal year 2026 expenditures are tracking within budget across every category. Next slide, please. Okay. Next this the agenda slide. Okay. So we're going to talk about revenues. We have no ARPA dollars in our expenditures. Next slide, please. Revenue. We've generated about $4 million against a $7 million annual goal, which is 57% of our target, with the positive variance of $887,000 as of May 31st, 2026. This variance is a good variance. It's not a shortfall. Revenue is coming in ahead of projection, driven by our strategic focus in our increasing sales and reducing our departmental expenditures. Our revenue mix consists of property sales, which are the primary driver, supplemented by miscellaneous income, then land banking agreements and municipal transactions. For this, we credit Calumet City, the City of Chicago, Dalton, and Madison, in which we've conducted municipal sales this year, and we have a land banking agreement with the CTA red line. We are on pace and it's not a projection. We're on pace against our fiscal year 2026 goal with a positive variance to date. Next slide. Thank you, Jessica. FY26 land bank fiscal year to date department expenditures listed are overall on pace in all categories. The first category are expenditure line personnel. The 20% variance is due to four positions not yet filled. We are currently in process for those positions to be posted. The next category is our operations and maintenance line, which is dedicated for our property maintenance landscape and needs related to our property inventory. Additionally, seasonal factors creates natural lags as we transition from winter maintenance activities into spring cleanup. The natural growing season also affects it, which typically occurs uh in April and May. The primary reason for this low spend uh stems from our billing cycles as we receive invoices one month behind the actual service date uh uh versus delivery dates. The land bank expects to catch up and meet our budget projections by 11.30. The next line, the largest uh variance and expenditure is the contingencies and special purpose line, which includes department spend of $650,000 and a credit appropriation transfer in the amount of $3.5 million. Um these combine uh produce a credit that you'll see there of $2.8 million. This uh appropriation transfer came from the Department of Budget and Finance to support our operations, uh Department expenditures as a special purpose fund. This line also represents many other expenditure categories, including our line of credit reserve, funds reserved for delinquent taxes, interest for our line of credit, our professional service line, survey reports, and scaffolding. Overall, the land bank senior management continues to actively monitor department spending to ensure we are aligned with our projections by 1130. Next slide, please. Um, the land bank has no ARPA funding, so we can go to the next slide, please. Now we want to talk about our fiscal year 2026 initiatives and our goal. Our first goal represents the percentage of properties sold for home ownership.

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