Latest news with #ParkRidgeCityCouncil
Chicago Tribune
29-07-2025
- Automotive
- Chicago Tribune
Park Ridge City Council sets limits, rules on e-bike and e-scooter operation around town
After more than a month of debate, the Park Ridge City Council approved the city's first regulations on electric bikes and electric scooters – in an effort to create guidelines around use of the popular vehicles and increase public safety. 'I think having an ordinance will give us better guidance,' police Chief Bob Kampwirth said at the July 21 City Council meeting, adding he would begin training and educating his officers righ away. In general, the new ordinance requires e-bikes to be operated on the street and not in parks, and stick to the rules other bikes and motor vehicles must follow. In addition, only people 14 years old and older may operate Class 1 and Class 2 e-bikes, and only those 16 and older may operate Class 3 ones. The classes are defined by state law, with Class 3 bikes being the fastest and able to go over 20 miles per hour. The rules in Park Ridge now state that e-scooters may be ridden on sidewalks except where prohibited — usually in pedestrian-rich areas — and people on foot always have the right of way for all vehicles. Also, none of the vehicles can interfere with automobile traffic. Finally, the ordinance stipulates that every e-bike in town has to have a permanent label on prominent display that includes 'a classification number for the bicycle that corresponds with a class under the Illinois Vehicle Code; the bicycle's top assisted speed; and the bicycle's motor wattage.' In addition, the equipment cannot be modified to run faster than designed. Resident Bruce Gilpin asked the City Council to crack down on vehicles he described as electric dirt bikes—motorcycles, essentially, that don't have license plates or lights and he says speed through his neighborhood. 'In my neighborhood, there are at least four or five people who have electric dirt bikes which they treat as bicycles,' he told the council. 'These bikes do not have taillights, they do not have license plates and they do not have headlights.' Bikes and other vehicles already have to have front white lights if used at night, according to city code. He said that the dirt bike riders seem to understand they weren't operating bicycles because they use motorcycle helmets. Later in the meeting, Kampwirth said any electric bike over 750 watts is a motorcycle under state law, so vehicles like that are already legally required to follow motor bike regulations. In all, city leaders seemed pleased with the law, though they worried the police may have difficulty enforcing it and spreading the word about the law change. 'This will help guide us. I see the pluses and minuses to it, and we'll see and get back to you,' the police chief said. Councilman John Moran said the regulations could always be amended and said the final draft of the ordinance was a good middle ground of all concerns that had been expressed around the issue of e-bikes and e-scooters. 'It's a good compromise and a good starting point for the chief to have something going forward,' he said. Moran told the police chief, 'If you encounter issues with it then come back and feel free to suggest amendments and we will support you.'
Chicago Tribune
17-06-2025
- Politics
- Chicago Tribune
Area towns proclaim gay pride month, make call to reflect on ‘equity, visibility, and justice' importance'
With gay pride month underway – replete with activities, awareness efforts, and parades and other pageantry planned – area towns have issued their annual proclamations recognizing June as 'pride month' and calling for unity. The Park Ridge City Council, along with the Village Boards of Morton Grove and Niles, each approved official proclamations marking recognition of the lesbian, bisexual, gay, transgender, queer-plus community and its allies. 'We celebrate that this is a place where all people are celebrated, welcome and can find their home,' Carol Hill, senior pastor of Park Ridge Community Church, said after receiving a copy of the pride month proclamation from Park Ridge Mayor Marty Maloney at the June 2 City Council meeting. Hill and Park Ridge Community Church helped a group of young people organize the first 'Pride in Park Ridge' event last year. The church acted as a fiscal agent for the organizers so they could accept donations to put on the events. 'Last summer, the most frequent comment that we heard at Pride of Park Ridge was 'I never thought I would see this in my town,' Hill said. The community celebration for 2025 was held June 4. The village of Lincolnwood has not had an official proclamation for 2025, but the village began flying pride flags on Lincoln Avenue in 2024 and promotes gay pride month on its official Facebook page The Morton Grove proclamation was accompanied by news of pride signs being removed from planters in the village without permission. Mayor Janine Witko made mention of the removals at the June 10 Village Board meeting. 'We just want everyone to know that we take that seriously,' Witko said. 'Police reports have been filed, and we will take action.' The pride month proclamation by Morton Grove sought to use the village motto to strike an inclusive tone. 'The Village of Morton Grove's tagline 'Incredibly Close and Amazingly Open' underscores our collective resolve to work together with all members of our community,' the proclamation reads. A representative from the Morton Grove Pride organization was in attendance as the proclamation was publicly presented, then approved by the board. Morton Grove Pride formed in 2024 with the stated goal of hosting its first gay pride month celebration a year later. In Niles, Mayor George Alpogianis presented the town's gay pride proclamation at the May 27 Village Board meeting. 'Pride Month offers an opportunity for all people to reflect on the importance of equity, visibility, and justice, and to honor the legacy of LGBTQ+ pioneers, advocates, and allies who have fought — and continue to fight — for freedom and equality,' the proclamation reads.
Chicago Tribune
21-02-2025
- General
- Chicago Tribune
Park Ridge to aid school district with exemption from Cook County paid leave rule
The city of Park Ridge has added Park Ridge School District 64 to its exemption from Cook County's paid time off ordinance, exercising the home-rule option of the law. The Park Ridge City Council voted at its Jan. 21 meeting to add District 64 to its existing exemption ordinance. The Cook County law, which requires county employers – including some school and park districts – to provide up to 40 hours of paid leave annually, went into effect last year. However, school and park districts were given until Jan. 1 to make the offering available to its workers. That time could be frontloaded or accrued one hour at a time for every 40 hours worked. District 64 enrolls some 4,600 students in pre-K to eighth grade across eight schools. The district has a workforce that includes more than 370 teachers. The county's law mirrors a state law of the same effect. Park Ridge had previously used its home rule authority to exempt itself from Cook County's Paid Time Off ordinance and from the state's Paid Leave for All Workers Act. Park Ridge Administrative Services Manager Leisa Niemotka pointed out that the original 2017 county ordinance on paid leave was amended to mirror the state's PLAW, but with one significant difference. 'The Cook County park district and school districts, while exempted from the state act, were not exempted from the Cook County paid leave ordinance,' Niemotka said at a 2024 meeting. The exemption the city of Park Ridge approved last year included Maine Township High School District 207 and the Park Ridge Park District. District 64 was not included at that time, with officials there choosing instead to work with the county to try to carve out the district's own exemption. 'There was a thought that 'Was there an oversight on the county's part?'' said District 64 school board President Denise Pearl. 'There were a lot of advocacy efforts going on at the county level at that time. We did not know what the results of that advocacy would be.' Cook County amended its ordinance in December 2023, but school districts advocated for exemptions well into the year. In September 2024, East Maine School District 63 Superintendent Shawn Schleizer delivered to the Cook County Board a letter from 141 superintendents and other officials representing 97 school districts asking to be opted out of the ordinance. Schleizer said school districts having to cover additional leave could compromise student safety. 'Specialized roles like social workers and nurses lack feasible substitutes, leaving vulnerable students without essential services,' Schleizer told the county board. Pearl said that District 64 already has leave policies it has worked out with its unions that balance the need for time off with the need to provide students with safety and education. She said seasonal and part-time employees like substitute teachers are where the paid time off ordinance complicates things. 'Some of them are very part-time where they may work once a month,' Pearl said. 'Does this apply to those individuals? Because we have a lot of substitutes, who work at different times for the district.' In his Sept. 2024 statement to the County Board, Schleizer estimated that the mandate would cost his district, which serves 12,000 high school students, an additional $3.1 million a year. Pearl estimated the ordinance would cost District 64 an additional $1 million a year, which would force them to shift resources and cut back elsewhere to compensate. 'It's a big cost, financial cost, to the district,' Pearl said. 'We would really have to look at our budget and reallocate funds to make this happen.'
