Clerk Touting Plan For All-Access Vehicle Stickers For Realtors
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CHICAGO (CBS) -- As city budget hearings continued Tuesday, Chicago City Clerk Susana Mendoza told aldermen a new type of vehicle sticker stands to make a substantial amount of money for the city.
Most aldermen already have backed the idea of an all-access parking permit for realtors, but Mendoza was selling her plan for the special parking sticker when her office had its turn at budget hearings at City Hall.
The city would offer Chicago realtors a $500 vehicle sticker allowing them to park in any residential parking zone from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., without worry of being ticketed for a residential parking zone violation. Realtors from the suburbs would pay $800 a year for the stickers.
Mendoza estimated the stickers could bring in at least $900,000 a year for the city.
"This initiative matches people who can afford to pay a high fee with a new product that will serve them well. 'Every agent I know will pick one up in a heartbeat' is what one realtor said to Crain's Chicago Business. To me, it's a perfect example of business and government working in concert," she said.
Meantime, Mendoza told aldermen year-round vehicle sticker sales have been a success. Starting last summer, the city began selling vehicle stickers year-round, rather than selling nearly 1.5 million stickers all in one month. The new vehicle sticker program features city stickers with renewal dates six months away from the vehicle's license plate sticker, and people can renew their stickers online without an additional fee.
Mendoza said the new program is a great success, because it eliminates the long lines at her office in June, and cuts back on overtime costs.
