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Residents Irked as Cars Moved, Parking Lost for Cricket Wireless Commercial

By Alisa Hauser | September 17, 2013 10:36am
 Filming of a TV commercial for a wireless phone company will wipe out parking on a section of North Avenue as well as about a one block stretch of a side street, Claremont Avenue. 
Film Crews Wipe Out Parking in Wicker Park Tuesday
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WICKER PARK —  Residents of a quiet enclave on the western edge of Wicker Park weren't too happy about production crews for a Cricket Wireless TV commercial taking over their street Tuesday.

By 6:15 a.m., four cars parked in the 2300 block of West North Avenue had been towed and "relocated," according to a city Streets and Sanitation worker.

At 6:30 a.m., a resident who declined to give his name told a reporter he witnessed a car being towed from the 1500 block of North Claremont Avenue. One of the relocated cars belonged to a DNAinfo Chicago reporter. Although the car was towed, it was not ticketed.

None of the towed cars received tickets, the production crew said.

Late Monday, Ryan Hoban, 31, a software sales representative who lives in the 1500 block of North Claremont avenue, said he "hates the fact" he won't be able to find parking when he returns from work Tuesday.

"I pay $100 per year for a parking permit but cannot park on the street," Hoban said.

When asked if he would feel any differently if the crews were shooting a TV show like "Mind Games" — which features actor Christian Slater and is filmed near the CTA Damen Blue Line "L" stop last week — Hoban said "no."

On Monday, crews from production firm Cap Gun Collective posted bright pink notices on homes and car windshields warning residents of the daylong parking restrictions, which will last from 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday.

Restrictions include the south side of North Avenue from Western to Oakley avenues as well as Claremont Avenue from North Avenue to LeMoyne Avenue.

The commotion is due to the filming of a TV commercial for Cricket Wirelesss scheduled to take place inside a business in the 2300 block of West North Avenue, confirmed Rich Moskal, director of the Chicago Film Office.

The filmings — while disruptive for some residents  — are a boon to the city, particularly in Wicker Park and Bucktown, which Moskal said "have historically been popular neighborhoods for filming."

While it’s "too soon to know the economic impact of film and TV production for 2013," Moskal said  2012 was a record year, with $184 million in local spending and the creation of 2,200 jobs.

There are six full-time television series headquartered in Chicago. Three big-budget feature films ("Transformers 4," "Jupiter Ascending" and "Divergent") chose to film in Chicago in 2013 as well.

Around 7 a.m. Tuesday, crews were spotted bringing equipment into Naveen's Cusine, a cooking studio at 2325 W. North Ave.

Located on the southeast corner of North and Claremont avenues, the studio is owned by chef Naveen Sachar.

Sachar said a nondisclosure agreement prohibits him from commenting on the filming at his business.