Now that Eric Krol of the Daily Herald has unveiled the brazeness of Rod Blagojevich’s 1% assessment increase, the Cook County Assessor has weighed in with a response. A very weak one.

A spokesman for the county assessor’s office said Monday that while the governor’s percentage increase may be low, Blagojevich still has the second highest assessed home of the 103 properties in his neighborhood in the same classification as his based on square footage.

What the assessor is not telling you is that of those 103 properties, Rod’s house is the second largest. Therefore, of course his total assessment is one of the highest. The assessment category is 2-04, which includes one-story houses of any age 1,801 square feet or greater. Rod’s house is 3,817 square feet. Nearly all the houses in that category are considerably smaller than Rod’s.

What the assessor isn’t telling reporters is that on a per square footage basis, Rod’s assessment is way below his neighbors.

Rod’s assessment per square foot (house) — $15.03
Rod’s neighbors’ assessment (2-04 class) per square foot — $18.70
Rod’s neighbors’ assessment per square foot on properties valued $400,000 and more — $23.19

How is Rod going to explain this 1(%)? So far, not so well.

“He pays his taxes every year and has never appealed his assessment,” Blagojevich spokeswoman Abby Ottenhoff said Sunday.

Who would appeal when the assessor essentially freezes your taxes for three years?

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