CITY HALL — Living people would no longer be eligible to be honored with a brown and white street sign under a measure endorsed Thursday by a City Council committee.
The new regulations were proposed by 9th Ward Ald. Anthony Beale in the wake of the decision to remove two street signs honoring President Donald Trump outside Trump Tower.
The new regulations — set to be considered by the full Council on Tuesday — are designed to prevent some of his "colleagues from making mistakes," Beale said.
In addition to requiring that honored people be dead, the new rules would require that the honorees "distinguished themselves by significant contributions to the city, state, nation, world," according to the measure.
In addition, the regulations would put a five-year limit on the honor, with the brown signs with white lettering coming down — unless the Council agrees to renew the honor.
In addition, aldermen would be limited to two honorary street sign requests — which cost between $600 and $1,000 — per year.
If adopted, the new rules would mean city crews would hit Chicago's streets in 2022 to remove all of the street signs not re-blessed by aldermen.
But before they change the rules, the Council's Transportation Committee endorsed plans for seven new honorary signs, including a plan to rename a three-block stretch of North Luis Munoz Marin Drive for Oscar Lopez Rivera as proposed by Ald. Robert Maldonado (26th.)
A Puerto Rican nationalist, Lopez Rivera had his sentence commuted by President Barack Obama. He served 35 years after being convicted of trying to overthrow the U.S. government.
A man whose father was killed at a New York City restaurant bombing organized by FALN, which Lopez Rivera belonged to, objected to the honor.
In addition, Emmett Street north to Addison Street would be designated as Lucy Gonzalez Parsons Way, in honor of the labor organizer.
