Alderman Puts Forth Milder (But Still Kinda Strict) Street Musician Crackdown

By Stephen Gossett in News on Mar 29, 2017 8:38PM

After an initial proposed ordinance to stifle street performers downtown was stalled last month amid legal pressure from the American Civil Liberties Union and skepticism from fellow council members, aldermen brought their revised, partially diluted version of the plan to City Council on Wednesday.

It's still pretty strict, it turns out, at least for the more audible artists. The ordinance, sponsored by Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd Ward), would permit downtown street performers who work the louder end of the spectrum to do their thing only for three hours on weekdays (between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. and 5 and 6 p.m.) and two hours on weekends (between 1 and 3 p.m.).

Those time restrictions apply specifically to street performers who use a "bullhorn or electronic amplification or a musical instrument or other object that is struck manually or with a stick or similar item to produce a sharp percussive noise." Hmm. Could the bucket boys have been in mind on that last detail, we stroke our chins and wonder.

The targeted area is also more circumscribed than before. The borders would now lie between Michigan Avenue and Dearborn Street, from east to west, and between Oak and Van Buren streets, north to south. (That's both sides of the streets for all of the above.)

Reilly said last month that his office has fielded “literally thousands” of complaints. "It is important to note these complaints do not only come from downtown residents, they come from dozens of downtown businesses and office workers, too," he said at the time.

But he's since spoken with different groups, including street musicians, in hopes of a compromise. "We believe this ordinance is a better, more equitable ordinance that balances these competing interests and could stand up to judicial scrutiny," he said via the Sun-Times.

In the meantime, we'll keep our ears peeled to the music to hear if the concessions are enough to mollify the opposition.

Related:
- In Defense Of Bucket Boys, Street Performers & Creative 'Noise'