City Council Committee Advances $2.53 Billion Parking Meter Sale to Stonepeak

The Chicago City Council's Finance Committee voted Thursday to allow the company that controls the city's parking meters to sell the concession to New York-based investment firm Stonepeak Partners. The proposal moves to the full City Council for a final vote, ahead of a Wednesday deadline to approve the sale.

In 2008, Chicago Parking Meters LLC leased the city's meters for 75 years in exchange for $1.15 billion. Records show the lease generated $1.97 billion in revenue for the firm between 2009 and 2024. Finance Committee Chair Ald. Pat Dowell (3rd Ward) called the original agreement a "textbook case of what not to do in municipal finance."

Under the new agreement tied to the $2.53 billion sale, Stonepeak would pay the city $75 million, according to Corporation Counsel Mary Richardson Lowry. The firm would also share 5% of its profits with the city, expected to total $376.2 million over the next 57 years. Dowell said those funds will go toward the city's pension funds.

The deal also requires Stonepeak to sell Omni Air International, which holds a contract with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for long-haul deportation flights. Richardson Lowry said the firm filed a certification promising the sale.

Reactions on the committee were mixed. Ald. Matt O'Shea (19th Ward) called it "the deal of the century," while Ald. Bill Conway (34th Ward) said write-offs for interest and depreciation make it "not quite the big win" he expected. Ald. Jason Ervin (28th Ward) and Ald. William Hall (6th Ward) voted against it.