Tim Novak is a reporter at the Chicago Sun-Times. He specializes in the banking and financial services industry, focusing on themes such as commercial and residential real estate, the housing market, and financial crimes. Tim's work has been featured in Chicago Public Media, Knowledia, and the Ludington Daily News, among others.
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Chicago, United States (Local)
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Tim Novak's coverage heavily focuses on local Chicago and Illinois politics, corruption, and legal issues. He frequently covers breaking news related to government announcements and evolving stories in these areas.
Pitching Tim would be most effective for those with expertise or insights into local Chicago and Illinois political matters, particularly around corruption allegations, legal policy regulation, city hall affairs, as well as the gaming industry within the state. Additionally, sources who can provide exclusive information or expert commentary on ongoing investigations or breaking news related to these topics are likely to catch his attention.
Given that he often reports on evolving stories with a focus on local government activities such as city contracts and regulatory actions by the Illinois Gaming Board, individuals with direct knowledge of these events may also find success when reaching out to Tim.
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By: Tim Novak
Ald. Desmon Yancy, whose ward includes the property where Allison Davis wants to build a hotel near the Obama Presidential Center, says he wouldn’t have backed the project had he known about the money Davis owes City Hall.
By: Robert Herguth, Tim Novak
Because they're grandfathered in under an old law, former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan and ex-Ald. Edward Burke can collectively pocket nearly $4 million and use it for virtually anything they want, so long as they pay income taxes.
By: Tim Novak
Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi saved Annette Guzman more than $3,400 by giving her homeowner exemptions on a condo she hasn't lived in since 2019. After questions by the Sun-Times, Kaegi ordered Guzman to repay some of the wrongful tax breaks — but not all.
By: Tim Novak
Chicago city workers, mostly CTA and CPS employees, owe more than $19 million in traffic tickets, water bills and various fines — and Mayor Brandon Johnson's administration has done little to make them pay up.
By: Tim Novak
Whether those loans, totaling around $8.5 million, were factors in the government shutdown of Metropolitan Bank & Trust in January remains unclear.
By: Tim Novak
After a Sun-Times Watchdogs investigation revealed that Annette Guzman took the tax breaks for five years, Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi, her former boss, made her pay up for just three. Now, she's making good on the other two years of wrongful breaks.
By: Tim Novak
Johnson's comptroller Michael Belsky worked for EKI-Digital as it was pushing City Hall to pay nearly $10 million in questionable invoices. Johnson's former chief operating officer John Roberson also once worked for the company and was part of a city review of EKI amid billing concerns.
By: Robert Herguth, Tim Novak
The $250 contribution to Friends of Brandon Johnson was given by Robert Blackwell Jr. in 2025 as the inspector general was investigating his technology company, EKI-Digital, and a questionable $9.6 million bill it wanted Chicago taxpayers to pay.
By: Tim Novak
When a top aide to former Mayor Lori Lightfoot left his job in 2023, a taxpayer-owned painting disappeared from his City Hall office. Mayor Brandon Johnson's aides say they have no idea where it is and what happened to it.
By: Robert Herguth, Tim Novak
When Mayor Lori Lightfoot hired Paul Goodrich as her chief operating officer in 2021, he'd had three IRS liens for unpaid taxes. Goodrich is at the heart of a recent inspector general's investigation and now might be called to testify about Mayor Brandon Johnson's proposed ban on giving any more…
