I want a rack in my neighborhood, on my corner, etc. Can I?

The multiple newspaper racks are only available in certain well-defined areas of downtown, governed by a Federal Court injunction and the resulting legal settlement. Thus, expanding the program to areas not defined in the legal settlement is somewhat unlikely, unless the city, the newspapers and the vendor (JC Decaux) are able to reach an agreement on a case-by-case basis to modify the multiple newsrack zone.

If you’d like to have a corner, or a street, considered for the program, please email brian@newcity.com. And be patient: it’s a long and complicated process.

Pending Multiracks

The following multiracks have still not been installed. We are awaiting status from the city. All slots in these racks have been allocated.

Adams & State SW

Adams & Wells NE

Chestnut & Rush NE

Bellevue & Rush NW

The following multiracks have been removed for construction. We are awaiting return dates from the city. All slots in these racks have been allocated.

Washington & Dearborn SE

Washington & Dearborn NE

Washington & State NE

Randolph & Dearborn SE

Walton & Rush NW

Please post contact information on your news boxes

The city has requested that all publications with news boxes on the public way post contact information on each box. This will aid the city and others in contacting the publication in case of emergency, or when the box needs to be moved for any reason.

Where can I find the City of Chicago ordinance as it relates to newsracks?

Click here for the ordinance

Why is there a big orange sticker on my box and what should I do about it?

The City’s Department of Transportation enforces the section of the Municipal Code that governs news box placement, and stickers boxes that are not in compliance with the ordinance. If you are stickered, you should immediately bring that box into compliance; as the sticker details, failure to do so will result in your box being removed from the street and destroyed.

If you get stickered, and cannot ascertain which section of the ordinance you are violating (see separate post with link to ordinance in FAQ), contact Ranjit Gangopadhyay in the Department of Transportation at rgangopadhyay@cityofchicago.org

Do I need a permit to put my newspaper box on the sidewalk?

Newspaper boxes are protected under the First Amendment to the Constitution, and the city of Chicago does not require a permit to place boxes on the public way. There are exceptions to this: you cannot place a freestanding box in one of the “multirack zones” and a city ordinance governs certain rules of placement. You should adhere to the ordinance, which prevents boxes in crosswalks, bus stops, etc., and also prohibits chaining them to trees, lightposts or other boxes. Please read the ordinance for all the details.

What is The Newsrack Task Force?

The Newsrack Task Force, a coalition of newspapers, city officials and civic organizations that advises on the city of Chicago’s Modular Newsrack Program, was created as a result of a legal settlement between the city and five newspapers who sued the city in federal court in 1998 to challenge the Constitutionality of an ordinance implementing the newsrack program. The newspaper members of the task force currently are the Chicago Reader, the Chicago Sun-Times, The Chicago Tribune and Newcity.

How can I get my publication in the multiple newsrack program?

We don’t have good news here. The slots are all allocated, and there are no current plans to add new boxes to the existing areas, so the only way that slots can be picked up by publications is when they are “abandoned.” The Newsrack Task Force is working with the city to create a fair way to identify abandoned slots and to reallocate them. Most likely, the slots will be reallocated via a publication wait list. If you’d like  to be on the wait list, please send an email to that effect to Brian Hieggelke at brian@newcity.com