You’ll have a choice of vehicle stickers next year — thanks to a City Council compromise Monday.
You’ll have a choice of vehicle stickers next year — thanks to a City Council compromise Monday.
Four non-profit groups sought the chance for free advertising on the stickers and the aldermen decided to break with the tradition of having only one sticker design — approving two for 2010 and another two for 2011.
“There are many people in this community who could benefit from our services but don’t know about us, so having the vehicle sticker would be very helpful,” said Ellen Browne, president of Seniors Action Services, Inc., which assists the elderly.
After hearing from representatives from each applicant, a committee decided the city will print two 2010 parking stickers — one for the McGaw YMCA and the other for the Rotary Club of Evanston Lighthouse.
One of the sticker designs.
The committee selected those two because they are each marking notable anniversaries.
The other two applicants, Senior Action Services and the Evanston Baseball & Softball Association, walked away with guarantees that their artwork would be on stickers in 2011.
The compromise, however, may complicate enforcement, Assistant City Manager Marty Lyons said.
“If we went to too many different patterns, it would be difficult on parts of the staff,” he said at the committee meeting.
Staff may inadvertently ticket innocent drivers because of it, he said, adding that he’ll report back to aldermen if complaints arise next year.
“We’re going to make sure that doesn’t happen,” said Alderman Ann Rainey, 8th Ward, who originally proposed the compromise at the committee meeting.
The new sticker order forms, which the city will mail in November, will let customers choose which sticker they wanted.
The city planned to print 25,000 stickers of a single design for $3,850. Printing two different stickers will cost the city “a couple hundred dollars” extra, Lyons said.
The McGaw YMCA marks its 125th anniversary this year and the Rotary Club of Evanston Lighthouse marks its 25th anniversary.
This is ridiculous
This is ridiculous. These stickers should be produced at the minimum cost possible to fulfill their purpose and nothing else. If there is an extra cost for the art, the larger size to accommodate it, etc, it should be defrayed by the beneficiary (the NGO) of the “advertisement” — it should not be free advertising. Isn’t the city broke, to begin with?
City Vehicle Sticker Artwork
The City should not require residents to display logos or other artwork advertising a specific non-profit. This is what is happening when the City Council allows a select few non-profits be able to display their logos on City vehicle stickers…free advertising and forced endorsement.
I have nothing against the non-profits involved in this artwork selection process, however, there are many other non-profits doing wonderful work in the Evanston community. It is not the City’s business to require residents with automobiles to advertise any non-profit by virtue of the fact that they are required to purchase a city sticker.
Why don’t we instead have a design competition that might involve artists from the community who are given an Evanston-oriented theme and let the community vote on the best design. Or, at least let the Arts Council pick the winner.
Bottom line, City government should not be showing favor to any specific non-profit organization and requiring all Evanston residents to do so also. On top of that, it should not be at the taxpayer’s expense.
parking stickers
Yes…I was especially annoyed when the sticker celebrated the anniversary of the Temperance Union. I also wouldn’t want a sticker glorifying Chuckie Dawes’ house.
It would be nice, however, to have a giant purple parking sticker honoring Northwestern University.
I second this motion.
I second this motion.
A bigger concern
… is that there was discussion that city workers may not be able to handle remembering there are two stickers that are valid.