CHICAGO CITY HALL (WBBM Newsradio) -- The company that wants to take over Chicago's parking meter contract may have eliminated one potential reason for aldermen to reject the deal.
Executives representing Stonepeak Partners, the private equity group that wants to pay $2.53 billion for the remainder of the city's meter contract, say they've reached an agreement to sell a charter airline that counts among its clients the Department of Homeland Security. Terms of the deal have not been disclosed.
Stonepeak's ownership of Omni Air, which has managed deportation flights for the Trump Administration, has been a sticking point for some aldermen since the private equity group first approached City Council back in May about buying the contract from its current owners. In the new purchase agreement negotiated by several aldermen and the city's Law Department, Stonepeak had agreed to seek a new owner for the charter company.
Members of the City Council are set to meet Tuesday to vote on whether to approve Stonepeak's purchase of the meters, in exchange for a $75 million "transaction fee," and a share of profits from the meters. If approved, it would be the first time the city could realize revenue from its own on-street parking spaces since the widely-criticized sale back in 2008 at the depths of the financial crisis.
Some City Council members, including West side Ald. Jason Ervin (28th Ward), have suggested the city can negotiate a more favorable purchase agreement. The ally of Mayor Brandon Johnson has also floated the idea of the city buying the meters back either on its own or with a private partner, even though the city itself abandoned a potential bid over concerns about borrowing costs.
The current deal must be approved by Wednesday.
Private equity company agrees on sale of Omni Air; vote Tuesday
Private equity company agrees on sale of Omni Air; vote Tuesday
