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Tinker Avenue residents press for mailbox consolidation; committee postpones parking changes
Summary
After residents described mail-delivery problems and safety concerns, the committee voted to postpone a decision on east-side parking and to focus staff work on Tinker Avenue, prioritizing efforts to consolidate and move mailboxes as the preferred, lower-cost option.
The Warrenville Public Works & Infrastructure Committee on Aug. 11 voted to postpone a proposed change to parking restrictions on the city’s east-side streets and to prioritize Tinker Avenue, where residents submitted a petition asking that parking be moved to the opposite side of the street.
Director Kler told the committee staff’s preferred approach is to work with the postal service to consolidate mailboxes onto the side of the street with fire hydrants; staff estimated moving the mailboxes for the three streets could cost about $30,000. As a backup, staff said it would pursue a code amendment to relocate parking if the post office will not move the boxes.
Residents who spoke at the meeting urged consolidation and raised safety concerns. Len Stenis, who identified himself from 3 South 550 Tinker, said a recent house fire made hydrant access his chief concern: “my biggest concern was if parking was shifted to the west side and there was another fire, I could see the fire department having a hard time.” He also described how four neighbors consolidated their mailboxes onto a single post and urged neighbors to work together to reduce stops and free up parking.
Fred Hellwig, another Tinker resident, said the problem appears to vary by carrier and driveway geometry; he volunteered to help install consolidated posts to lower costs. Aaron Lockhart, who runs a hair salon from his home on Tinker, said moving parking away from his driveway would disrupt clients and again urged mailbox consolidation instead.
Committee members debated whether to treat all east-side streets the same or focus only on Tinker, where the petition originated. Several aldermen recommended postponement to gather more information and to try neighborhood consolidation before spending city funds. Alderman Widner moved to postpone and direct staff to concentrate on Tinker and encourage mailbox bundling; the motion passed by voice vote.
Next steps: staff will pursue discussions with the postal service about consolidating mailboxes, explore cost-sharing options and return with more information for the City Council if needed.
