Junk and scrap cars bought in Chicago Ridge

From our lot we head up Cicero to Cal Sag Road, follow IL-83 along College Drive, and turn north on Ridgeland Avenue. About five miles, ten minutes without traffic, and we’re in the middle of Chicago Ridge.

The village and its name

Chicago Ridge is a village of 14,433 people (2020 Census) packed into about 2.3 square miles of Worth Township, with ZIP codes 60414 and 60415. The name comes from ridges of dirt dumped by the Wabash Railroad during construction for the 1893 Columbian Exposition. Railroads still shape the place: the Wabash line crossed the middle of the village, a terminal railway set up yards there, and Metra’s SouthWest Service has a station in town.

It’s an irregular shape, bordered by Oak Lawn on the north and east, Bridgeview and Palos Hills on the west, and Worth to the south.

Ridgeland Avenue runs through everything

Most directions here start with Ridgeland. Chicago Ridge Mall is at 95th Street and Ridgeland, Chicago Ridge Commons at 99th, and the village municipal complex at 104th. Southwest Highway, 103rd Street and 111th Street are the other main roads, and the Tri-State Tollway passes through the village without an interchange there. The Park at Chicago Ridge, a 135-acre industrial park with rail service, sits off Southwest Highway at 103rd.

One parking note on Ridgeland: in front of businesses it’s 30-minute parking (Sec. 50-174(b)(13)). A dead car outside a storefront won’t last.

Mostly apartments

Chicago Ridge is the most apartment-heavy town we serve. Census estimates for 2020 to 2024 show about 60 percent of housing units in buildings of five or more units and only about 36 percent in single-unit homes, with owners and renters split close to fifty-fifty.

Apartment-lot pickups are straightforward. Tell the property manager a tow truck is coming, give us the building and space number, and make sure the car isn’t blocked by a neighbour’s. If you’re a renter, you still need the title in your name or other proof of ownership; the no-title page explains Illinois’s list.

Chicago Ridge street rules

• Snow. No parking on any public street within 12 hours after two inches or more of snow, unless the street has been plowed (Sec. 50-175).
• Overnight on certain streets. Posted bans include 107th Street from Ridgeland to Lombard and Oxford and Princess Avenues from 109th to 111th, 7:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m. (Sec. 50-174).
• Permit blocks. Some streets, such as 102nd Place east of Southwest Highway, are resident permit parking during set hours.
• Ten hours. A car left unattended or abandoned on a street for ten hours or more can be towed on police authorization (Sec. 28-151(b)).

The abandoned-car rule

Chicago Ridge’s code (Chapter 28, Article V) is worth reading if your car is dead and its plates have lapsed. An “abandoned motor vehicle” there is one that lacks an unexpired registration plate or, for residents, a current village vehicle license, and is wrecked, dismantled, inoperative and apparently abandoned (Sec. 28-1). Leaving one on a street, or in public view on any property, including your own, is unlawful and a public nuisance (Sec. 28-149(a)). Removal can be authorized after seven days, or right away for a hazardous dilapidated vehicle.

The village license is part of it. Residents’ vehicles need a current one, on a July-to-June year, and a dead car whose license has lapsed fits the abandoned definition. Compare it with nearby towns in our inoperable car rules guide, or skip the wait with a scrap car removal.

Chicago Ridge neighbours we cover

From Chicago Ridge we also pick up in Worth to the south and Palos Hills to the west.