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Aldermen press DPW on accessible parking, business impacts of recent street redesigns
Summary
During debate on the 2026 multimodal capital program, aldermen pressed DPW about complaints from businesses and residents over lost street parking and the utilization of newly installed accessible on-street spaces; DPW said it follows PROWAG guidance and will provide project lists and utilization reviews.
A lengthy exchange at the Public Works Committee focused on accessible on-street parking and local business complaints tied to recent street redesign projects. Chris Vaughn (DPW) presented the multimodal capital program for 2026 and described most of the allocation as small-scope rapid-implementation projects, with approximately $1,400,000 reserved for infrastructure work.
Alderman Bowman and others criticized recent redesigns that reduced street parking, citing Wall Street and other locations where businesses say lost parking undermined trade. "Wall Street, you've managed to completely destroy Wall Street between Broadway and Van Buren," one alderman said, arguing the redesign removed too much parking and left expanded sidewalks underused.
James Washington, Public Works coordination manager, responded on accessibility concerns: the department is following PROWAG (Public Right of Way Accessibility Guidelines) and uses a block-face approach to determine accessible meter-space placement. Washington said the city is assessing utilization and will be less aggressive placing accessible spots where they go unused. "We are following PROWAG... 1 out of 25 spots need to be dedicated to accessible parking," he said, and staff are reviewing where spaces are used and where they might be reconsidered.
Several aldermen requested a list of specific projects and locations included in the multimodal budget and asked DPW to revisit recently installed redesigns that generated complaints. DPW said it would provide the committee with the requested project lists and would evaluate locations where accessible parking spots appear underused.
Committee members also discussed the larger question of balancing accessibility, traffic flow and the economic needs of small businesses during reconstruction and pointed to the need for clearer outreach and mitigation when construction affects parking. DPW acknowledged the trade-offs and recommended targeted reviews and better pre-project outreach in some cases.
The committee ordered the multimodal capital file to advance; members directed staff to supply project-location lists and utilization data requested during the hearing.
