Author Archives: Tom Tresser

Tom’s Book on No Games Chicago Now On Sale!

I am thrilled to announced that my book on the No Games Chicago campaign from 2009 is now on sale from Routledge Press! Use this link (feel free to share widely)-> www.tinyurl.com/Get-NGC-book. It’s a dramatic story with international intrigue, a few Davids going after many Goliaths, daring tactics, civic thuggery, attempted bribes, and a real-life spy! Although the organizing took place in 2009, the lessons learned and unlearned are striking for Chicago and the rest of the country. For one thing, three white billionaire families who each own a sports team are all angling for BILLIONS of public dollars to build new stadiums! Sound familiar? And, across the USA, another eight cities are proposing massive public subsidies for stadiums – over $10 billion for those places. The price tag for Chicago’s greedy team owners has been estimated to be at least $3 billion and perhaps DOUBLE that! Buy the book. Sign the petition demanding NO PUBLIC SUBSIDIES for stadiums.

Read my op-ed from Crain’s Chicago Business from July 29, 2024, “Let the billionaire owners pay for their teams’ stadiums themselves.”

Get “Chicago Is Not Broke” via Ingram

Get a hard copy or an e-book version of “Chicago Is Not Broke. Funding the City We Deserve” via Ingram Publishing. $15 plus tax/shipping (for hard copy). It’s a real civic bargain! This slim volume contains short articles by noted Chicago civic experts describing $5 BILLION in progressive and sustainable revenue solutions for Chicago! Click the link or scan the QR code and get busy. Get a copy for someone you love!

Subscribe to “CivicNotes” and Keep Up With My Work

Get a copy of “Chicago Is Not Broke. Funding the City We Deserve” via Issuu (view on your device) for $15. Get a hard copy mailed for $20 (+shipping). Order a copy of my book on the No Games Chicago Campaign (20% discount with promo code “AFLY03”). Make a non-deductable investment in Tom’s work via PayPal.

June 2023 – Dear Civic Comrades, Neighbors, Allies, and Supporters – After ten years of working on the CivicLab, I am stepping back from operations and much of the work of the CivicLab. I will stay involved with TIF training. Health issues have caused me to scale back my activities and I will not be updating this site. If you would like to stay connected and follow my new work, research, and writing (one book coming out in mid-2024 and another in the works), please subscribe to my Substack newsletter at http://tresser.substack.com. Thank you for all your support and interest over the years!

  • My take on What Happened (Disaster Election) – Part 1. Part 2.
  • My call to action for America’s progressive sector – from The Nonprofit Quarterly – What Now? It’s a call for a radical change in focus and behavior!

Tom explains TIFs and Illuminates the TIFs of Kane County and Aurora in his 225th public meeting since 2013. He was the guest of Aurora Alderman John Laesch and Working Families Auroura. They are working to stop the city of Auora from giving a billionaire casion operator $58 million in public TIF dollars! Sign the petition.

No Games Book Coming Spring 2024!

Super excited to announced I’ve signed a contract with Routledge Press to publish the story of the No Games Chicago campaign! The story has never been told. In fact, we were writen out of the record four different times over the years since the campaign was fought in 2009. Sign up for news and – eventually – ge the book at https://nogameschicagobook.com. Coming Spring 2024.

IL Legislator Present At The Creation Of TIFs Agrees – TIFs Got To Go!

“I applaud Tom Tresser for his dedication to public service and civic engagement – especially through his TIF Illumination Project. Tresser has been diligently investigating TIFs for over ten years and doing public meetings to share findings. I attended his well-attended workshop that covered TIFs of Woodstock a few years ago and all my misgivings about TIFS were confirmed. My familiarity with Tax Increment Financing goes back to the 1970’s when I was a member of the Illinois House of Representatives and the TIF legislation was approved. I am so happy I voted against that legislation. It had all the hallmarks of massive grabs of taxpayers’ money. And that’s how it turned out. I have been following TIFs ever since, especially the ones that cost me higher taxes so developers can be subsidized by these municipal slush funds. The process is so secretive, yet so costly to everyone not in the TIF districts. The type of light that Tom has focused on this massive scam needs to continue and be spread nationwide. TIFs are corrupt and need to be abolished. Tresser is the only civic player I know of who is on top of the TIF scheme.” – Cal Skinner, Crystal Lake, IL, former 16-year member of the Illinois House of Representatives and McHenry County Treasurer (property tax collector)