Oct 6, 2008 1:51 pm US/Central
137 Vehicles Towed For Bucktown Foot Race
Neighborhood Residents Not Pleased
CHICAGO (STNG) ―
Tow trucks carried off 137 vehicles along a 5K race route in the Bucktown neighborhood on the near northwest side on Sunday morning, and some motorists are crying foul -- saying there were no signs posted to give them ample warning.
Not so, says Matt Smith, spokesman for the city Streets & Sanitation Dept. He says the "no parking" and "tow" signs were posted late Thursday and early Friday on the run route, and crews on each shift leading up to the race made sure they were in place.
"This is a safety issue," Smith said, noting it would put runners in a dangerous situations if people were moving vehicles during the run.
Tim Eberline, 28, whose 1998 Ford Explorer was towed from its spot on Charleston at Leavitt, said he never saw a no-parking sign, not even a sign on the big tree adjacent to the stretch of street where he parked. He saw his car at midnight, and when he awoke Sunday morning it was gone. He said someone had posted a homemade note telling those who felt their cars had been wrongly towed to call Ald. Scott Waguespack's office.
Eberline, who lives in Park Ridge but was spending the night at his old roommates' place, tracked his SUV to the impound lot in the 700 block of North Sacramento. He paid $160 to get it out; but by immediately retrieving -- rather than putting in the paper work to appeal -- he was told he was pleading guilty and had no further recourse.
"It's just not fair and people need to answer for it," said Eberline, who is still looking for an avenue to appeal.
Police and event organizers typically work together to plan race routes and address safety issues -- including banning parking, police said. Streets & San crews were asked to handle posting no parking signs and enforcing towing, Smith said. Records will show they did just that.
Race organizers could not be reached for comment.
(Source: Sun-Times News Group Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2009. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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