Free Sunday Parking Coming To Some Wards Sunday
By Chuck Sudo in News on Jun 14, 2013 1:30PM
Free neighborhood Sunday parking, the one change to the city’s parking meter deal with Chicago Parking Meters LLC the Emanuel administration has touted as being beneficial to residents, will launch in parts of 12 wards across the city this Sunday, a full two weeks ahead of schedule.
The free Sunday parking (in exchange for extra metered parking time on weekdays and Saturdays) was supposed to go into effect by July 1. Instead, according to the Sun-Times, CPM has been working to change pay and display boxes in the 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 11th, 12th, 14th, 15th, 20th, 22nd, 23rd and 25th wards to ring in free Sunday parking and the longer weekday hours.
The action has taken some aldermen by surprise. Ald. Will Burns (4th) told the Sun-Times “we need to have some conversations about downtown Hyde Park” and the rollout. (Burns was one of the aldermen who voted in favor of the changes.)
“The Hyde Park Chamber of Commerce has expressed concern about free parking on 53rd Street and the major shopping corridors. Their concern is parking spots won’t turn over, and people who want to park to use their businesses won’t be able to do so.”
The prospect of motorists hogging free parking spots in neighborhoods was one of the main concerns of the aldermen who voted against the changes and was also cited in a 2009 report by the Active Transportation Alliance. Aldermen Pat Dowell (3rd), Toni Foulkes (15th) and Willie Cochran (20th) agreed to testing out the free parking on commercial strips in their wards to see how free parking would affect the business districts in their wards.
The Sun-Times reports there are as many as 15 aldermen still hoping to repeal the trade-off. Mayor Emanuel, in a statement, continued to crow about change, saying he was “proud to have fought for and won” it. Emanuel said in a statement announcing the rollout, “Everyone in Chicago deserves a day of rest from the awful parking meter deal, and the sooner that relief can begin the better. I am proud to have fought for and won free Sunday parking for our city’s neighborhoods. While the deal is done, the job of holding the parking meter company accountable is never over for this administration. We will always remain vigilant and steadfast on behalf of the taxpayer.”
The remaining wards will be switched over within the next 10 days.