Creote v. City of Chicago

Citations

• 56 Ill. 422

Syllabus

<p>1. Special assessments in Chicago —what defense allowable after confirmation— construction of the statute. Where it is alleged that the board of public works in the city of Chicago, in making a special assessment for the construction of certain improvements in the city, willfully and knowingly included in their assessment the cost of certain work in respect to such improvements, which had been done by persons other than the city, property owners affected by the assessment are not precluded from presenting such fact as a defense after confirmation of the assessment by the common council, but the defense may be made for the first time, on the application for judgment on the assessment.</p> <p>2. Same—admissibility of evidence—what constitutes a defense. On an application for judgment upon an assessment for curbing with curb walls, filling and paving a certain street in the city of Chicago, it is competent for a property owner embraced in the assessment, under a proper form of objection, to prove that a portion of the curb walls upon said street and on the line of the proposed improvement, had been built before the assessment by the board of public works was made. While such evidence, standing alone, would not establish a defense, yet it would afford a link in the chain of evidence which would. If followed by evidence that such portions of the walls had been built by property owners, or any party other than the city, and the board had willfully and knowingly included them in the assessment, it would be such a fraud upon the property owners as ought to render the assessment void.</p> <p>3. Same—whether a particular’ defense is embraced in the objections filed. An objection filed to such an assessment stated that the estimate of the expense of the improvement, as reported by the board of public works to the council, was knowingly and willfully stated by the board at a much larger amount of money than the board believed the expense would be, and at a sum much larger, b