The City of Chicago has hit a local real estate owner with more than $15 million in fines for rat-related tickets, according to a report.
Suzie B. Wilson, a Northbrook resident, has racked up over $15 million in fines tied to hundreds of properties throughout the South and West sides of Chicago. The properties, many of which are vacant lots, are overseen by a number of property management companies, all owned by Wilson.
The fine was reported by the nonprofit news organization Block Club Chicago, which-along with the Illinois Answer Project-investigated the city's battle against rat infestation.
The outlet added that the tickets issued to Wilson's property management companies were due to the uncut weeds and dumping of accumulating materials and junk, which provides "rat harborage." The outlet also noted that while many of the tickets were issued since 2010, and are still unpaid, some were only recorded after the investigation began.
Apart from Wilson's companies, the city of Chicago also fined local agencies for rat-related violations, including the Chicago Housing Authority and the Cook County Land Back Authority. Together, the agencies incurred $664,000 in fines. The Chicago Board of Education and the City Colleges of Chicago also incurred fines, per the Illinois Answers Project.
In total, the city has handed out $153 million in fines for rate-related tickets since 2019.
Chicago's Rat Problem
The investigation comes as Chicago once again tops the list of the "Rattiest Cities" in the United States, ranking first on the list for the ninth consecutive year. Los Angeles came in second on the Orkin's list, with New York ranking third, Washington, D.C. at fourth, and San Francisco at fifth.
The list, released by pest control company Orkin in October, was based on the number of new residential and commercial rodent treatments performed from September 2022 to Aug. 31, 2023.
Chicago's Mayor Brandon Johnson allocated $14.8 million to the "Bureau of Rodent Control" in the 2024 budget, approximately $1.5 million more than it was in 2023, city documents showed. The bureau "baits and eliminates rodents, educates residents on how to reduce the risk of rodents on their property, and removes dead animals."
