Description: Challenge to agreement between the City of Chicago and a private company granting the company control over the City's parking meter system for 75 years.
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Uetricht v. Chicago Parking Meters, LLC
Case Documents:
Filing Date Type File Action Taken Summary 02/01/2022 Notice of Appeal Download Notice of appeal filed by plaintiffs. 01/24/2022 Memorandum Opinion and Order Download Motion to dismiss granted. Illinois Federal Court Dismissed Challenge to 75-Year Agreement for Chicago Metered Parking Operations. The federal district court for the Northern District of Illinois dismissed a lawsuit challenging an agreement in which the City of Chicago granted the defendant the exclusive right to operate and collect revenue from the City’s metered parking spaces for a 75-year period. The plaintiffs—who asserted federal antitrust claims and a claim under the Illinois Consumer Fraud Act—alleged, among other things, that the agreement was made “without regard for changes in transportation resulting from climate change and the imperative need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.” The court found that the plaintiffs had standing based on alleged injuries from increased parking fees but that the state action immunity doctrine shielded the agreement from federal antitrust liability. The court declined to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over the state law claim. 11/08/2021 Reply Download Reply filed in support of motion to dismiss. 10/25/2021 Opposition Download Memorandum of law filed by plaintiffs in opposition to defendant's motion to dismiss. 09/27/2021 Motion to Dismiss Download Memorandum of law filed in support of motion to dismiss amended complaint. 09/07/2021 Complaint Download First amended complaint filed. 08/10/2021 Motion to Dismiss Download Memorandum of law filed in support of motion to dismiss. 06/23/2021 Complaint Download Complaint filed. Chicago Residents Asserted Parking Meter Monopoly Would Inhibit Carbon-Free Transportation Alternatives. Three Chicago residents filed a lawsuit challenging an agreement under which the City of Chicago granted a private company “monopoly control over the City’s parking meter system for an astonishing 75-year-long period.” The plaintiffs alleged the agreement was made “without regard for changes in transportation resulting from climate change and the imperative need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.” They also alleged that they faced loss or damage from paying for “an increasingly outmoded parking system” that “delays or inhibits the increased use or availability of better carbon free means of transportation.” They asserted that the agreement and the company’s monopoly control over City parking meters violated the Sherman Act and that the company’s operations under the agreement constituted an unfair trade practice in violation of the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Practices Act.