Chicago Cubs Co-Owner Owes Years Of Back Taxes For Wilmette House

WILMETTE, IL — The Cook County assessor informed Chicago Cubs co-owner and Republican National Committee Finance Chair Todd Ricketts Tuesday he faces tens of thousands of dollars in back taxes after the assessed value of his Wilmette home more than doubled. The adjustment followed the revelation that Ricketts and his his wife, anti-tax advocate Sylvie Légère, were under-assessed for nearly a decade as they paid taxes on a demolished property instead of the significantly larger house they built in its place.

The reassessment of the house at 510 Laurel Ave. — from a taxable value of under $830,000 to more than $1.96 million — came after an inspector from the assessor's office visited the property July 10 for a field check, according to a spokesperson for the office.

The visit confirmed the presence of a 5,000-square-foot contemporary house on the site, rather than the century-old house of half the size that Ricketts had been paying tax on since 2010.

The field inspection came one day after the Chicago Tribune published a report detailing how Ricketts avoided paying taxes on the custom-built home completed in 2010 with the help of property tax appeal attorney James Fortcamp.

Ricketts could face an annual increase in his property tax bill of more than $20,000, as well as at least $60,000 in back taxes and interest for the past three years, the maximum period allowed under Illinois law. The Tribune reported the law was amended in 2011 to limit the amount of time assessors could adjust assessments when they miss new constructions or additions that change property values.

According to a letter to Ricketts from Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi, Ricketts has until next week to appeal the new assessment and next month to challenge the finding that he will owe back taxes. But even without an appeal, he will still wind up saving money compared to what he would have paid had the new house been properly assessed.

"Once our office learned of the alleged discrepancy with the [Ricketts house], we completed a field inspection of the property. Based on the findings of that field check, our office set an assessed value for 2019 and mailed a supplemental notice dated July 16," said Kaegi spokesperson Meaghan Murphy. "Also on July 16, our office sent a notice of omitted assessments for the three prior assessment years (2016, 2017, and 2018), according with state statute."

Ricketts and Légère, an anti-tax advocate, spent more than $2.34 million on a pair of neighboring pieces of land in the 500 block of Laurel Avenue in Wilmette — the same block where his brother, Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts, sold his house last year. They had both houses demolished, according to village records, and submitted plans in 2007 for the new structure.

In 2013, years after the couple razed the century-old house on the site, Fortcamp submitted documents to the Cook County Board of Review with false information about the house and a photo of the demolished structure as part of an attempt to further lower the couple's property taxes, the Tribune found.

As a result of the appeal, the assessed value of the property at 500 Laurel Ave. was cut to $126,000 from over $700,000 due to being reclassified as a vacant yard.

A statement from Brian Baker, a political adviser for the Ricketts family, said Todd Ricketts assumed Fortcamp had the correct information and promised to work "in good faith to fix" any mistake, according to the Tribune.

Todd Ricketts is the youngest child of the founder of TD Ameritrade, Joe Ricketts. The family has an estimated net worth of $2.7 billion. He and three of his three siblings sit on the board of the Chicago Cubs, which received a $8.5 million tax break from Cook County for renovations to Wrigley Field and is likely to receive another $100 to $125 million in tax credits from the federal government, the Tribune reported.

After former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanual refused the team's request for up to $200 million in taxpayer subsidies, Todd Ricketts said the family should "contemplate moving, or at least recognize that we are maybe not the right organization to own the Cubs," according to emails obtained by Splinter News.

"[Todd] Ricketts consistently spearheaded efforts to defend the taxpayers' money," according to a November 2016 statement from President-elect Donald Trump, announcing his intention to nominate him as deputy commerce secretary.

The move was a reversal for Trump, who had previously warned the "Rickets" family in a February 2016 tweet that they "better be careful, they have a lot to hide!" Todd Ricketts withdrew his name from consideration for the post in April 2017 due to potential conflict of interests.

After billionaire casino mogul Steve Wynn resigned as finance chair of the Republican National Committee in January 2018, a day after the Wall Street Journal reported dozens of accusations of sexual misconduct, Todd Ricketts was tapped as the party's chief fundraiser.

"I have wanted to be helpful to President Trump and the Republican Party since our successful 2016 elections," Ricketts said at the time. "Serving as the Republican National Committee’s Finance Chairman is the perfect opportunity."

Ricketts and Légère, who also co-owned a Wilmette bike shop until it shuttered in December 2017, have not responded to a request for comment or questions about whether they intend to voluntarily pay back taxes on the six years they avoided paying the value of their home — despite not being legally obligated to do so.

Fortcamp, the family's property tax appeal attorney, has not responded to any queries about his involvement in the assessment — or whether he intends to file another appeal. He did not answer when asked whether he intentionally filed false and outdated information with the Board of Review or did so accidentally.

Earlier: Cubs Co-Owner Avoids Paying Property Taxes On Wilmette Mansion