Chicago council defers meter sale approval, criticizes Johnson over ‘lack of transparency’

By Sean Reed | The Center Square
The Center Square

(The Center Square) – The Chicago City Council is torn over a proposal from Mayor Brandon Johnson that would approve a transfer in ownership of the city’s privatized parking system.

Aldermen have said Johnson’s office acted against the interest of transparency by withholding information.

The Chicago City Council’s finance committee was scheduled to hold a hearing Monday on the transfer, but it was ultimately delayed.

The agreed deal is subject to final approval by the council, and aldermen have called for increased transparency over the terms in an effort to get a better deal for taxpayers.

The council’s lawyers and members received more information regarding the deal on Friday, which is why the hearing about the matter was pushed back, according to committee chair Pat Dowell.

“I have heard from a number of colleagues both on the committee and not on the committee that they need more time to review all of the information that was sent to everybody,” Dowell said.

The delay will give the body just five days between when it is first discussed in a public meeting and a recently-disclosed deadline.

Early last week, 22 aldermen co-signed a letter to Mayor Brandon Johnson, informing him that they will be firm in their vote against the measure to approve the purchase – which muddled whether the deal will pass.

“Your administration agreed to a binding timeline on behalf of the city of Chicago without informing the body that must vote on the underlying transaction,” the letter stated, criticizing Johnson for a lack of transparency and a failure to answer questions regarding the deal – including silence on potential taxpayer impact.

The Johnson administration reportedly only made the legislative body aware of a June 30 deadline to make a decision on the matter weeks before, according to the letter.

The city’s parking meter system was first sold to a private consortium of investors in 2008 under Mayor Richard M. Daley, in an effort to raise revenue and plug a hole in the city’s budget.

The sale resulted in a net $1.15 billion for Chicago, but the 75-year deal has been panned as a one-time solution that sold out taxpayers in the long-run.

The group has increased hourly parking rates in the years since, with drivers now required to pay between $2.50 and $7 per hour depending on the location of a spot, according to the company’s website.

Now the group that invested in the system has seen major returns on the investment, and is looking to cash out, with a tentative agreement lined up between Chicago Parking Meters LLC and New York City investment firm Stonepeak Partners.

Johnson floated a potential city buyback of the system earlier this year, but he said the idea was dropped over the potential cost.

“The city would have been required to debt finance the entire purchase, meaning that essentially 100% of parking revenues would be dedicated to debt service for approximately four decades,” Johnson said.

In response to stay-at-home orders in 2020, Chicago’s then-Mayor Lori Lightfoot saw an opportunity to stop ticketing for meter violations along with an attempt to reclaim a number of parking spots, a move that invited litigation from the parking company.

Under Johnson, the city negotiated a settlement in 2025 for just a fraction of the company’s demand, but taxpayers were still left on the hook for the $15.5 million payout over Lightfoot’s move.