Parking in Chicago sucks anywhere you'd like to leave your car unattended. In fact, I was pursued legally for all the tickets I racked up living in Lincoln Park 8 years later to the tune of $880, and my brother just recieved a letter from collection agency/law firm that collects these tickets for Chicago seeking to collect on 2 tickets from 1997. He lives in LA now. I'll post a link to the firm tomorrow on this post if anyone wants to see how these guys operate.

Some neighborhoods require that you acquire a numbered permit sticker for your hood. The hours you need the permit are like, from 7 PM to 7 AM, if I remember right. They ticket relentlessly, they also boot agressively. You can go to the alderman's office and get some temporary paper passes that adhere to the windshield. each pass is good for one day, and you write on it what day you will be parked. I started using one pass and changing it daily with eraseable ink. The thing of it is, you need a City sticker first-used to be 50 bucks, probably more now. And then, to get a pass, you can't have any tickets outstanding on the car. Try that when you're on a college or post college budget in Chicago.

Anyway, visitors don't need a city sticker but you have to have the passes. for one period, I used to work overnights at one job and afternoons at another. I would come home from working overnight and drive right behind the "boot patrol" while they booted cars, looking for a spot. I evaded them so many times only because of my schedule. Also, if you don't pay the tickets after one month, they double the fine. The fines used to be $25, probably higher now. Its such a racket. I love Chicago, but you know, I also hate the freakin' place.

When I lived there, people used to put old furniture or 2 x 4's where they liked to park so no one else would take the spot. Then if you move the stuff, you know your car's gonna get keyed, or worse.

Oh yeah, ask the building manager? Ha! Building manager? What, you'z guyz tink we got some manager you can talk to? Where you think you're going? Denver?