Mayor Jodi Miller Pushes Through Her 3rd Tax in Just 18 Months
FREEPORT, IL – September 17, 2025
On Monday, September 15, 2025, the Freeport City Council approved Ordinance #2025-54 on its second reading — an ordinance establishing the Gladewood Special Service Area (SSA), dedicating roadways, and levying new taxes to pay for subdivision improvements.
But just two days later, as of September 17, 2025, the official ordinance file had mysteriously disappeared from the City’s website, replaced with a message reading: “No Preview Available. File is in owner’s trash.”
What the Ordinance Does
City Manager Rob Boyer explained that the SSA followed a petition signed by a majority of Gladewood subdivision property owners. No formal objections were filed. City staff recommended passage, which now imposes an additional $400 annual SSA tax on approximately 16 landowners in the subdivision, lasting for the next 15 years.
Concerns Over “Skipping the Line”
3rd Ward Alderwoman raised a serious concern during the meeting: the repair work in the Gladewood subdivision could be given priority over long-neglected streets across Freeport. With many neighborhoods struggling under decades of delayed investment, she warned that the SSA deal effectively lets one subdivision “skip the line” ahead of citywide road needs.
Manager Boyer seemed to acknowledge this point but called it a “give and take,” suggesting that since Gladewood residents are paying extra, their roadwork deserves to be expedited. Freeport’s City Manager may prefer the term “give and take” but we are going to call it exactly what it is… PAY TO PLAY!
The Broken Promise of the 2025 Road Plan
This controversy comes on the heels of Mayor Jodi Miller’s 2025 Road Plan being cut in half. Earlier this year, it was revealed that the administration diverted the new 1% sales tax increase — sold to residents as a dedicated fund for future road construction — to pay down past debts instead. The result: far fewer miles improved in 2025 than what residents were promised.
For Freeport taxpayers who supported that sales tax hike under the impression it would fix deteriorating streets, the Gladewood SSA feels like another bait-and-switch. Each of them being required to pay $6,000 and hope that the city of Freeport figures out how to keep a promise.
Passage Despite Objections
Despite community concerns, Mayor Miller called the roll and the ordinance passed unanimously.
Fighting4Freeport’s Take
Once again, residents are left with more questions than answers. Why was the official ordinance file deleted from the city’s website and placed “in the trash”? Why should one subdivision receive priority roadwork at the expense of others, simply because they agreed to a special tax? And why has Freeport’s leadership repeatedly broken promises on infrastructure spending while outsourcing more city functions to private contracts?
For a community now proudly labeled “distressed” by the Mayor herself. Residents deserve transparency, accountability, and fairness in how their tax dollars — and promises — are managed.
