Residents voice concerns about vehicle drop-offs
by BRIAN NADIG
The city Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection recently held a meeting to hear residents’ concerns about the dropping off of vehicles by tow trucks at Avondale Collision and Repair, 3501 N. Milwaukee Ave.
Residents have complained about noise due to overnight drop-offs at the business and reckless driving on local streets by some tow truck drivers. At the Oct. 5 meeting, residents raised several concerns about Cook County Towing, which reportedly is storing tow trucks on an industrial lot in the 4200 block of North Knox Avenue.
"Today’s meeting was for Avondale Collision and Repair. Cook County Towing delivers vehicles to Avondale for repair but is not licensed by the city and was not the subject of the community meeting," department spokeswoman Lilia Chacon said in a statement.
"Several attendees mentioned Cook County Towing’s impact on the area, but the meeting was limited to the business operations of Avondale and what they could do to address the problems their operation, including tow truck deliveries, has on the community. Avondale represented that they did not have a towing business and received vehicles from multiple towing companies, including Cook County Towing," Chacon said.
An attorney for the department is recommending that Avondale stop accepting vehicles from its entrances off Keeler Avenue and the alley and instruct tow truck drivers to use the Milwaukee Avenue entrance. The attorney also suggested that the company leave a few empty parking spaces in its parking lot for overnight deliveries, with a sign instructing drivers to take the vehicles elsewhere if the spaces are full.
17th (Albany Park) Police District commander Elias Voulgaris said that the district has received "very few" complaints about tow trucks in the area.
"However, I do notice residents complaining on Facebook, yet not notifying us. We do ticket tow trucks for traffic and parking violations and notify the Illinois Commerce Commission police, who follow up on tow truck regulations," Voulgaris said.
A local resident is asking that pictures of reckless tow truck driving in the area be sent towtruckreporting@gmail.com along with the time, date and location of the incident, according to the Old Irving Park Association. The pictures are then being forwarded to the department.
The department is planning to have a follow-up meeting with residents.
