WHARVES AND DOCKS (10-40-310 et seq.)
Municipal Code of Chicago tit. 10, ch. 10-40, art. III
in effectMunicipal Code of Chicago § 10-40-320 Maintenance of wharves and docks.
10-40-320 Maintenance of wharves and docks.
Every owner of premises abutting on the harbor, or any portion thereof, shall at all times keep and maintain in a state of good repair and in a safe condition all wharves, docks, piers, seawalls, slips, riverbank retaining walls, riverbank bulkheads, dolphins, booms, bulkheads, jetties, mooring facilities, pilings, sheetings and other similar structures on or appurtenant to such premises. Every violation of this section shall constitute a separate and distinct offense for every day such violation shall continue. The commissioner of transportation shall notify in writing such owner of any violation of this section and direct him to restore or repair such structure within a reasonable time. In addition, any nuisance now existing or which may hereafter result from an owner's failure to keep and maintain such wharves, docks, piers, seawalls, slips, riverbank retaining walls, riverbank bulkheads, dolphins, booms, bulkheads, jetties, mooring facilities, pilings, sheetings and other similar structures on or appurtenant to such premises in a state of good repair and in a safe condition shall also be subject to abatement as provided in Chapter 7-28 of this Code.
(Prior code § 38-34; Amend Coun. J. 12-11-91, p. 10832)
Municipal Code of Chicago § 10-40-330 Construction and repair of structures in harbor.
10-40-330 Construction and repair of structures in harbor.
No person shall drive or place, or cause to be driven or placed, any pile or piles, stone, timber, earth, or other obstruction of any kind whatsoever, in the harbor, or build, construct, or repair any dock therein, or build or cause to be built any bridge or other structure across any part of the harbor, or drive or place, or cause to be driven or placed, any pile or piles of timber, or make any excavation for the purpose of furnishing or laying foundations for any building or structure, at any point within 40 feet of any part of the harbor, without obtaining a special permit in writing from the Commissioner of Transportation so to do. Application for said permission shall be made in writing to the Commissioner, and shall be accompanied by a sketch, a plat, and plans showing the nature of the work to be done. Upon such application being made and such sketch, plat, and plans being furnished as herein required, the Commissioner shall solicit input from relevant aldermen and departments, including but not limited to, the Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection, the Department of Police, the Department of Fire, and the Office of Emergency Management and Communications, and may consult with the Army Corps of Engineers, the United States Coast Guard, the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, and the Chicago Park District, and may also solicit input from stakeholders, including operators of vessels in the harbor, as to the factors the Commissioner considers in determining whether to grant the permit. The Commissioner shall issue the permit desired, upon payment of the permit fees hereinafter provided, unless it shall appear that the work to be done will result in unduly obstructing the harbor or endanger the users or the navigability of the harbor or in endangering the safety of any dock, pier, breakwater, or other structure located upon or along the harbor or pollute the harbor or is inconsistent with the Chicago River Design Guidelines.
It shall be the duty of the Commissioner to require all persons who may be engaged in repairing, renewing, altering, or constructing any dock within the City to produce a permit from the Department of Transportation, which permit shall specify the character and location of such repairing, renewal, alteration, or construction, and in default of the production of such permit, the Commissioner shall at once stop all work on such dock, and shall cause the arrest of any such persons engaged in such unlawful repairing, renewal, alteration, or construction. Any such person so arrested shall be fined not less than $1,000.00 nor more than $1,500.00 for each offense. Each day that a violation occurs or persists shall constitute a separate and distinct offense. In the event of any such dock having been repaired, renewed, altered, or constructed in or upon the water area of the harbor of the City, the person thus convicted of a violation of this section, in addition to the fine hereinbefore specified, shall be required at once, and at his own expense, or cost, to remove such dock back to its former location; and, in default of such removal of such dock, the Commissioner is hereby authorized to cause such dock to be removed, to such location as he deems best and to recover, from the person so convicted, the cost or expense of such removal.
(Prior code § 38-35; Amend Coun. J. 12-11-91, p. 10832; Amend Coun. J. 10-16-19, p. 7341, § 3)
Municipal Code of Chicago § 10-40-340 Permit fees to construct or repair.
10-40-340 Permit fees to construct or repair.
The fees for permits issued under the preceding section shall be as follows:
Building Work
A building that is under 5,000 square feet overall area ..... $100.00
A building that has 5,000 or more square feet but fewer than 50,000 square feet ..... $500.00
A building of 50,000 or more square feet ..... $1,000.00
Bridge Work
Substructure of span bridges – each foundation ..... $500.00
Superstructure of span bridges ..... $1,000.00
Pile trestles ..... $100.00
Water Pipe Work
12 inch diameter or less ..... $200.00
12 to 36 inch diameter ..... $500.00
Over 36 inch diameter ..... $750.00
Additional fee for aerial or submarine crossing ..... $1,000.00
Additional fee for intakes ..... $100.00
Sewer Work
12 inch diameter or less ..... $200.00
12 to 36 inch diameter ..... $500.00
Over 36 inch diameter ..... $750.00
Manhole or vault – each ..... $100.00
Each outfall structure in addition to the above ..... $1,000.00
Electrical Work
Utility pole – each ..... $100.00
Structural steel pole or tower – each ..... $500.00
Manhole or vault – each ..... $100.00
Additional fee for aerial or submarine crossing, cable or conduit ..... $1,000.00
Tunnel, each linear foot ..... $10.00
Minimum fee for electrical work ..... $100.00
Dock Work – Shore Protection
Jetties, cribs, docks, etc., $2.00 per lineal foot for repair work, with a minimum fee of $100.00
New work, $4.00 per lineal foot with a minimum fee of $200.00
Floating docks, platforms, and riverwalks, per square foot ..... $2.00
Floating docks, platforms, and riverwalks, minimum fee ..... $100.00
Landscaping and floating gardens, per square foot ..... $1.00
Landscaping and floating gardens, minimum fee ..... $100.00
River edge, stabilization, per square foot ..... $1.00
River edge, stabilization, minimum ..... $100.00
Dumping and Filling for Construction Adjacent to Harbor
Dumping and filling in waterway – per cubic yard ..... $4.00
Dumping and filling in waterway, minimum fee ..... $200.00
Dumping and filling on land – per cubic yard ..... $2.00
Dumping and filling on land, minimum fee ..... $100.00
Miscellaneous Work
Miscellaneous work, minimum fee ..... $100.00
Fence extending to dock, each ..... $100.00
Fence extending along dock, each linear foot ..... $5.00
Trestle or conveyer ..... $100.00
Water tank ..... $500.00
Coal or material hopper ..... $500.00
Smokestack ..... $500.00
Derrick ..... $500.00
Platform or runway, each square foot ..... $1.00
Depression in dock or pit, each square foot ..... $2.00
Pavement, each square foot ..... $2.00
(Prior code § 38-36; Amend Coun. J. 11-24-20, p. 24619, Art. III, § 1)
Municipal Code of Chicago § 10-40-350 Bond for removal of old dock materials.
10-40-350 Bond for removal of old dock materials.
Any person that shall do any dock work wherein it shall be necessary to remove existing piles or sheeting, or in cases where an entirely new and original dock is to be constructed, shall furnish a bond in the sum of $100,000.00 approved by the Commissioner of Transportation, payable to the City and conditioned for the satisfactory removal of any and all earth, stone, or other material which may have escaped into the waters of any part of the harbor area, and for the satisfactory removal of earth, stone, or other material that may have been moved to the water side of any new and original dock. Said earth, stone, or other material herein mentioned shall be removed to a depth equal to the navigable depth fixed or existing at the time when, and location where, said dock work is being done.
(Prior code § 38-37; Amend Coun. J. 12-11-91, p. 10832; Amend Coun. J. 11-24-20, p. 24619, Art. III, § 1)
Municipal Code of Chicago § 10-40-360 Dredging permits.
10-40-360 Dredging permits.
No person shall dredge in, on, or along the waters of the harbor without a permit from the Department of Transportation. The fee for such permit shall not exceed $100.00 per day and the day shall consist of eight hours.
No additional fee shall be charged for the removal, or dredging in connection with the removal of old dock materials, unless the material so removed shall be deposited in the lake, in which case a towing permit shall be necessary in addition to the dock permit.
(Prior code § 38-38; Amend Coun. J. 12-11-91, p. 10832; Amend Coun. J. 11-24-20, p. 24619, Art. III, § 1)
Municipal Code of Chicago § 10-40-370 Encroachments and obstructions.
10-40-370 Encroachments and obstructions.
It shall be the duty of the commissioner of transportation to report to the city engineer any and all encroachments upon the harbor lines as now established or which may hereafter be established, and thereupon the said harbormaster and city engineer shall take such action as may be necessary to enforce the provisions of this Code and to remove or cause to be removed any such obstruction or encroachment. If it shall be found that any pile, stone, timber, earth, dock, bridge, or other obstruction whatever, has been placed in any part of the harbor in violation of the provisions of this Code and that the person who has placed same or caused it to be placed therein refuses or neglects to remove such obstruction upon being requested so to do by the city engineer, or commissioner of transportation, the commissioner of transportation shall have the power, and it is hereby made his duty, to proceed forthwith to remove such obstruction and to charge the expense of such removal to the person who placed such obstruction in the harbor, or caused it to be so placed, and the imposition of any fine or penalty hereby provided for against any person obstructing the harbor shall not be held to exempt any such person from a recovery by the city of the cost of removing any such obstruction.
(Prior code § 38-39; Amend Coun. J. 12-11-91, p. 10832)
Municipal Code of Chicago § 10-40-380 Discharge of cargo.
10-40-380 Discharge of cargo.
No owner, lessee, or person in possession of any wharf or dock at which any vessel shall have been discharging its cargo shall suffer or permit any part of such cargo so discharged to project from such wharf or dock over or into the harbor after the vessel so unloaded shall have removed from such wharf or dock.
(Prior code § 38-40)
Municipal Code of Chicago § 10-40-390 Vessels lying at docks.
10-40-390 Vessels lying at docks.
It shall be unlawful for any mud scow, flatboat, dredge, or any such craft to be placed or laid alongside of another while lying at any of the docks or wharves of the harbor during the navigable season of the year, without first having obtained permission from the commissioner of transportation.
(Prior code § 38-41; Amend Coun. J. 12-11-91, p. 10832)
Municipal Code of Chicago § 10-40-400 Protection from fast-moving vessels.
10-40-400 Protection from fast-moving vessels.
All docks, wharves, bridges, piers, protections, or other places where persons or property are endangered by the fast moving of vessels or craft shall have a blue flag flying in the most conspicuous place thereon and as near the point of danger as possible. At night a blue light shall take the place of the flag. No vessel or craft shall run past such a blue flag or light at a rate faster than two miles per hour. Any person violating any of the provisions of this section shall be fined not less than $100.00 nor more than $500.00 for each offense, and shall be held liable for any damage to any person or property sustained by reason of such violation.
(Prior code § 38-42; Amend Coun. J. 11-24-20, p. 24619, Art. III, § 1)
Source: City of Chicago, Municipal Code of Chicago (American Legal Publishing, codelibrary.amlegal.com)URL: https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/chicago/latest/chicago_il/0-0-0-2653609Fetched: 10/24/2026