Cook County operates the Affordable Housing Trust Fund through the Bureau of Economic Development, but no countywide developer linkage fee exists. Linkage and inclusionary fees are imposed suburb-by-suburb (Evanston, Highland Park, Oak Park, Skokie) under home-rule authority.
Cook County's Affordable Housing Trust Fund (Ord. 04-O-04) is funded by general revenue, HOME Investment Partnerships, and CDBG dollars rather than developer linkage fees. The county has no inclusionary zoning ordinance. Within Cook, several suburbs impose their own linkage or inclusionary fees: Evanston requires 10% affordable units or fee-in-lieu (~$175,000/unit); Highland Park requires 20% affordable; Oak Park collects ~$100,000/unit fee-in-lieu; Chicago's Affordable Requirements Ordinance imposes 10-20% on developments receiving city support. Suburbs without home-rule status (under 25,000 population) cannot impose linkage fees absent state authorization.
Where local linkage applies, failure to pay fee-in-lieu or build required affordable units blocks certificate of occupancy and triggers per-unit penalties up to $500/day under each municipality's zoning code.
See how Evanston's affordable housing linkage fee rules stack up against other locations.
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