(WBBM NEWSRADIO) – A Chicago alderman is continuing his call for bollards – or, barriers – along streets with high-end retail stores, following the latest “smash and grab” attempt by burglars near the downtown.
“This has been happening with increasing frequency. They're being very selective in the stores they choose to attack. They know where the high-valued merchandise is and they know where the store fronts are that they can penetrate with a vehicle,” Ald. Brian Hopkins of the 2nd Ward tells WBBM Newsradio.
In the latest incident, a Chicago police officer was wounded in a shootout after confronting robbers who tried to ram a Gold Coast storefront. One suspect also was wounded, police said.
Hopkins, whose ward includes Streeterville and part of the Magnificent Mile, has said he wants sturdy but decorative bollards installed along Michigan Avenue and other retail areas that would stop vehicles.
Each bollard would cost about $1000 each, plus installation, and could be paid for by special tax district funds already collected from retailers, he said.
When asked about the type of aesthetics he has in mind, Hopkins said the city would issue a Request for Proposals and select a competitive bid.
“The city council support that we need is already there. The funding is already there. We just need the Department of Transportation engineers to get their field work done as quickly as possible,” he said.
Hopkins hopes the bollards can be in place by summer.
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