No dead end to disabled parking in city

After disabled drivers die, relatives sometimes take over their reserved parking spots -- making it tough for everyone to find a space

Disabled drivers in Chicago can get a unique benefit from the city: For $70 and proof of disability, the city will mark off a parking space just steps from the person's door.

In 2006, 11,423 people participated, getting spaces on residential streets from Hegewisch to Rogers Park.

The only problem was, at least 260 of them were dead.

A Sun-Times investigation found that the spots sometimes remain for years after the disabled person has moved away or died, calling into question how well the city is monitoring the program.

Many of the spaces wind up as complimentary reserved parking for able-bodied relatives or new residents -- adding to the frustration of neighbors trying to find a space.

"It's abused," said Gloria Rankin, who lives in the congested 4900 block of North Seeley, where 43-year-old Charles Peele frequently parked his white Ford Escape SUV in the spot that belonged to his father, Harold Peele. The elder Peele died on Dec. 21, 2004, at 85. As for Charles, "He's young. He doesn't need it," Rankin said. Peele could not be reached for comment.

The city's Department of Revenue attempts to monitor the parking spots without being "heavy-handed" toward the disabled, a spokesman said.

"What we try to do is take a commonsense approach to this, because we know this is a population that is very sensitive," assistant director Ed Walsh said.

Throughout the summer and fall, the Sun-Times visited the sites of all 260 active permits held by dead people. In neighborhoods around the city, vehicles were parked in those spots, including cars with out-of-state plates, a contractor vehicle, a Dumpster, and in several cases, cars whose owners had transferred the deceased permit holders' placards to their own dashboards.

In many other instances, disabled spots registered to a living permit holder were occupied by cars displaying no disabled parking designation -- raising questions about deeper abuse of the program.

In the 2100 block of West Coulter on the South Side, Maria Guzman regularly parks her 2005 Land Rover in the spot listed under mother-in-law Imelda Guzman's name -- even though Imelda, 70, died nearly three years ago.

"That is my car," admitted Guzman, 41 and not disabled. She said her father-in-law is disabled and stays with the family six to seven months of the year. "My father-in-law does not drive. ... I only park there when he's here. Other than that, I park on either side," Guzman said.

People cheating the system deprive neighbors of parking and give disabled parking programs a bad name, advocates for people with disabilities say. "It's wrong for people who are not qualified to use the spot," said Gary Arnold, spokesman for Access Living, a service and advocacy group.

Commissioner Karen Tamley of the Mayor's Office of People with Disabilities, who uses a vehicle with a special lift on the passenger's side, said the parking program is critical for people who want to retain their independence.

"Obviously, the parking issue is a big issue for the disabled community," Tamley said, adding that the spectacle of family members scamming the spots harms a necessary program. "That's just not right."

Nearly 10 percent -- 1,097 -- of the 11,423 disabled spots on city rolls last year were at addresses where no nearby resident holds a state-issued disabled license plate or parking credential, as required by law.

A Sun-Times review of active city permits found 260 spaces set aside for dead people. Some of those spaces have been removed by the city, but as of late October more than half remained, leaving 131 disabled parking spots for people who are dead. In some cases, the permit holder has been dead five years or more.

"Anybody who runs those [programs] should do periodic updates, and check those things for people that have died, people that have moved," said Bill Bogdan, disability liaison for Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White. "The people that turn around and park there, I don't know what goes through their minds. They know that it's wrong."

It's also against the law. Family members can't park in the disabled spot of a dead disabled relative -- even if they are disabled, according to Bogdan and others.

In the city program, applicants who prove they are disabled get a 16-foot parking space, marked off by blue-and-white signs, in front of their home. The signs allow only the car displaying a city placard with the city permit number to park there. The car also must have a state-issued disabled license plate or placard. People parking there without the necessary credentials can get a $200 ticket.

The Department of Revenue administers the program, but applications often come through the office of the local alderman.

The 21st Ward on the South Side has the highest number of permits -- 589 -- according to city data. The 11th Ward, which includes Bridgeport and is the Daley family's political base, has the second highest number -- 511.

"I have a large senior population that own their own homes," 21st Ward Ald. Howard Brookins said. "It may be a necessary evil in wards like mine, where people have two and three cars."

"I think it's a program that's needed," said 11th Ward Ald. James Balcer, but "people that take handicapped parking spaces from people that need them should be held accountable."

Some with disabled spots in front of their homes claim the city has failed to remove the signs even after being told the permit holder is dead.

In September, Rodolfo and Brenda Arreola kept a large Dumpster in the disabled space in front of their house in the 1500 block of West Norwood in Edgewater Glen. The parking space belonged to Vernon Berghauer, who died May 14, 2004, and left the house to the Arreolas in his will, Rodolfo Arreola said.

"I told the City of Chicago, 'Mr. Berghauer passed away on such-and-such a date. Please remove the sign,' " Arreola said. "I want those signs to be removed because nobody uses the spot."

The Department of Revenue's Walsh said the city removed 1,026 signs in 2006 because the permit holder had died, moved away or was no longer disabled. A recent computer upgrade will allow the department to remove more signs in 2007, he said.

Ald. Billy Ocasio (26th), who chairs the City Council's Human Relations Committee, said neighbors frequently call his office to report the deaths of disabled neighbors and ask for the signs to come down.

More cheaters could be caught if the Revenue Department were required to purge its rolls every month, he said.

"We all know it's wrong," said Ocasio, whose ward includes Humboldt Park. "We're at a shortage of parking in the city of Chicago because of all the new development."

Tamley said her office hopes to help the city tighten its application and recertification procedures.

The city has 9,684 signs "in good standing," Walsh said. But more than 2,000 others are "in question," meaning officials are uncertain if the disabled permit holder still lives there. "There are sometimes cases that fall through the cracks," he said. "What we don't want to have happen is to be so heavy-handed that we're removing signs from people that really need them and then reinstalling them at taxpayer expense."

Walsh said people who think a parking spot is being misused should call the city at (312) 744-PARK.

Brookins said the city is slow to remove the signs even when notified, he said.

"It happened at the house that I purchased in the 9100 block of [South] Union," he said. Though he spent more than a year asking for the signs to be taken down, "it didn't get done until I became the alderman."

The state defines a disabled person as someone who "as determined by a licensed physician: (1) cannot walk without the use of, or assistance from, a brace, cane, crutch, another person, prosthetic device, wheelchair, or other assistive device; (2) is restricted by lung disease to an extent specified by the state (3) uses portable oxygen; (4) has a cardiac condition to an extent specified by the American Heart Association; or (5) is severely limited in the person's ability to walk due to an arthritic, neurological or orthopedic condition; or (6) cannot walk 200 feet without stopping to rest because of one of the above 5 conditions."
SOURCE: Illinois Secretary of State

To get a residential disabled parking spot in Chicago, an applicant must have a disabled license plate or placard issued by the Illinois secretary of state. Those credentials require a doctor's exam.

Applications are available from aldermen's offices and from the city's Department of Revenue. The applicant must prove he or she lives at the address where the spot would be and has no access to off-street parking, such as a garage. The Department of Revenue then inspects the site.

The initial fee for the sign is $70. After that, the city charges an annual maintenance fee of $25. The fee can be waived for veterans or those who meet the requirements of Senior Citizens and Disabled Persons Property Tax Relief.

The city can reject an application if it determines no accessible parking is available or because the applicant has off-street parking. The city generally refuses to grant permits on blocks that already have four spaces, though it allows for exceptions, said Ed Walsh, assistant director of the Department of Revenue.

Anyone whose application is denied can appeal to the Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities, which makes a recommendation within 30 days of the appeal.

Eric Herman