TELECOMMUNICATIONS EQUIPMENT ON, OVER OR UNDER PUBLIC WAYS

Municipal Code of Chicago tit. 10, ch. 10-30

in effect

Municipal Code of Chicago § 10-30-010 Definitions.

10-30-010 Definitions. (a) "Commissioner" means the commissioner of the department of transportation of the City of Chicago. (b) "Department" means the office of emergency management and communications of the City of Chicago. (b-1) "Executive director" means the executive director of emergency management and communications of the City of Chicago. (c) "Public way" or "public ways" means city highways, streets, alleys, public rights-of-way dedicated or commonly used for utility purposes and water. Public way shall not include any city property that is not specifically described in the previous sentence, and shall not include city buildings and other structures and improvements, regardless of whether they are situated in the public ways. However, the commissioner may, when necessary for the purposes of this chapter, designate other city property, that is functionally similar to the public way, as the public way for some or all purposes of this chapter. The designation shall be made pursuant to rules and regulations promulgated under Section 10-30-050. (d) "Telecommunications" has the meaning ascribed to the term in Section 3-73-020 of this Code. (e) "Telecommunications provider" means any person who provides telecommunications services. (f) "Telecommunications equipment" does not include pay telephones that are subject to Section 10-28-265 of this Code. For purposes of this chapter, the definitions in this section shall control over any other definition of the same term contained in another chapter of this Code. (Added Coun. J. 10-1-97, p. 53280, § 3; Amend Coun. J. 12-7-05, p. 64870, § 1.9; Amend Coun. J. 11-19-08, p. 47220, Art. IX, § 1; Amend Coun. J. 11-8-12, p. 38872, § 191)

Municipal Code of Chicago § 10-30-020 Permit required.

10-30-020 Permit required. (a) No telecommunications provider shall install or maintain any telecommunications equipment on, over or under the public way without first having obtained a telecommunications provider permit issued by the commissioner pursuant to this chapter, after consultation with the executive director. (b) The commissioner shall deny the issuance of a permit under this chapter, or shall revoke any such permit, only if: (1) the commissioner determines that the installation or maintenance of the telecommunications equipment would endanger public health or safety or otherwise inconvenience the public; or (2) the commissioner determines that the telecommunications provider has not paid any applicable infrastructure maintenance fee or license fee; has not provided any security required pursuant to this chapter or regulations issued thereunder; has not complied with specifications prescribed under this chapter; or has otherwise failed to comply with the provisions of this Code, or any rules or regulations adopted pursuant thereto. (Added Coun. J. 10-1-97, p. 53280, § 3; Amend Coun. J. 12-7-05, p. 64870, § 1.9; Amend Coun. J. 11-19-08, p. 47220, Art. IX, § 1)

Municipal Code of Chicago § 10-30-030 Notice.

10-30-030 Notice. (a) A telecommunications provider that intends to install any telecommunications equipment on, over or under the public way shall give the city notice of such installation by filing written notice with the commissioner no less than ten days prior to the date the installation is to begin or, if the installation requires excavation relating to new construction, no less than 30 days prior to the date the excavation is to begin. The notice shall be in the form of plans, specifications and documentation of the purpose and intention of the telecommunications provider with respect to the installation, and shall be in form prescribed by the commissioner which shall be designed to provide the commissioner with all of the information necessary to determine whether the installation will be consistent with the safety and welfare of the public and all users of the public way. Within three business days after receiving notice under this section, the commissioner shall notify the alderman of any ward in which the installation is to be made. (b) Within ten days after receiving notice under this section (or within 25 days if the notice is for installation that requires excavation relating to new construction), the commissioner shall specify the portion of the public way that the telecommunication provider shall be permitted to occupy without creating an undue risk to the safety or welfare of the public and all users of the public way. Upon receiving the commissioner's specification of the permitted location, the telecommunications provider shall provide the commissioner with any additional plans, specifications and documentation available. Upon the telecommunications provider's submission of additional plans, specifications and documentation available, the commissioner shall, in a timely fashion, issue a permit allowing the telecommunications provider to install and maintain telecommunications equipment in accordance with the terms and conditions specified in the permit. However, if permission for installation on particular portion of the public way must be denied for any of the reasons specified in subsection (b) of Section 10-30-020, that denial shall be issued in writing within the ten- or 25-day period, as the case may be, and shall specify the reasons for the denial. If the city fails to specify a permitted location or issue a written denial within the time required by this subsection (b), a permit shall be deemed to have been issued for the telecommunications provider to install and maintain, solely at the telecommunications provider's risk, telecommunications equipment on, over or under the public way, provided that such installation and maintenance: (i) is not in violation of this Code or any rules and regulations adopted pursuant thereto: and (ii) does not interfere with other proper uses of the public way. (c) Nothing in this chapter shall excuse any person or entity from obligations imposed under any applicable law or ordinance, or regulations issued by the department of transportation, concerning generally applicable standards for construction on, over, under, or within, use of or repair of the public ways, including standards relating to freestanding towers and other structures on the public ways, nor shall any person or entity be excused from any liability imposed by any such law or ordinance for failure to comply with such standards. However, a person or entity that installs or maintains telecommunications equipment pursuant to this chapter shall not be required to obtain a public way work license or public way work permit under Chapter 10-20. (Added Coun. J. 10-1-97, p. 53280, § 3; Amend Coun. J. 12-7-05, p. 64870, § 1.9; Amend Coun. J. 11-19-08, p. 47220, Art. IX, § 1)

Municipal Code of Chicago § 10-30-040 Permit fees; security; compensation for use of other property.

10-30-040 Permit fees; security; compensation for use of other property. (a) Notwithstanding any provision of this Code to the contrary, a telecommunications provider that is properly paying the applicable Chicago Simplified Telecommunications Tax pursuant to Chapter 3-73 shall be exempt from any permit fee or other compensation otherwise payable to the city under this Code for use of the public way, including fees otherwise payable under chapter 10-20, for any period of time for which the Chicago Simplified Telecommunications Tax is paid. (b) The applicable fee for a permit issued under this chapter to a telecommunications provider that is not excused from paying permit fees under subsection (a) shall be an amount determined by the commissioner to provide for recovery of the city's actual costs or reasonable estimated costs of maintaining and regulating the public way in a manner consistent with the public welfare. Such costs shall include, but not be limited to, the city's cost of inspection, regulation, maintenance, administration and repair. (c) No permit shall be issued under this chapter unless the applicant provides such surety or other instrument of security, insurance and indemnification as the risk manager, in the office of the city comptroller and the commissioner, reasonably may require for the purposes of this chapter. (d) Nothing in this Code shall prohibit the city from requiring compensation for, and franchise or other agreements governing, the use of any city property that is not the public way as defined in this chapter. (Added Coun. J. 10-1-97, p. 53280, § 3; Amend Coun. J. 12-7-05, p. 64870, § 1.9; Amend Coun. J. 11-19-08, p. 47220, Art. IX, § 1; Amend Coun. J. 11-7-18, p. 88803, § 29)

Municipal Code of Chicago § 10-30-050 Rules.

10-30-050 Rules. The Commissioner, after consultation with the Executive Director, the Commissioner of Streets and Sanitation and Commissioner of Fleet and Facility Management, is authorized to establish rules on a competitively neutral and nondiscriminatory basis as shall be necessary to: (1) further the purposes of this chapter; (2) manage the public ways, as defined in this chapter; and (3) ensure that access to, or use or occupancy of space on, under or over the public way, is conducted and maintained in a safe and efficient manner consistent with this Code. (Added Coun. J. 10-1-97, p. 53280, § 3; Amend Coun. J. 12-7-05, p. 64870, § 1.9; Amend Coun. J. 11-19-08, p. 47220, Art. IX, § 1; Amend Coun. J. 11-26-19, p. 11390, Art. III, § 19; Amend Coun. J. 11-15-23, p. 6542, Art. I, § 19)

Municipal Code of Chicago § 10-30-060 Violation - Penalty - Revocation - Removal.

10-30-060 Violation - Penalty - Revocation - Removal. (a) Any person who violates this chapter shall be subject to a fine of not less than $500.00 and not more than $2,000.00 for each offense. Each day that such violation continues shall be considered a separate offense. The permit of any such person shall be subject to revocation and any such person shall be enjoined to comply with this chapter. (b) Any telecommunications equipment installed or maintained in violation of this chapter and applicable regulations may be removed by the city, or seized and disposed of by the city in case of abandonment, at the owner's or operator's expense. (Added Coun. J. 10-1-97, p. 53280, § 3)

Source: City of Chicago, Municipal Code of Chicago (American Legal Publishing, codelibrary.amlegal.com)URL: https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/chicago/latest/chicago_il/0-0-0-2652691Fetched: 10/24/2026