Stonepeak is set to acquire Chicago’s parking meter system from Chicago Parking Meters, LLC, according to reports from Mayor Brandon Johnson’s office via FOX Chicago. The proposed transaction remains subject to approval by the Chicago City Council.
The acquisition would transfer ownership of one of the most controversial municipal privatization agreements in U.S. history to Stonepeak, an infrastructure investment firm with approximately $88 billion in assets under management across more than 60 countries.
Financial terms of the proposed transaction have not been disclosed, and it remains unclear how much Stonepeak agreed to pay for the system. The company had not publicly commented on the deal at the time of reporting.
The parking meter system originated from a 2008 agreement under then-Mayor Richard M. Daley, when the City of Chicago leased the system for 75 years in exchange for a one-time $1.15 billion payment. The deal was designed to address budget shortfalls during the Great Recession.
Over the years, the agreement has faced widespread criticism from policymakers and residents, with critics arguing that private investors recouped their investment far faster than anticipated while retaining decades of future revenue streams. The transaction has frequently been described as one of the worst financial deals in Chicago’s history.
Mayor Brandon Johnson had previously explored the possibility of bringing the parking meter system back under city ownership. However, the administration ultimately determined that reacquiring the system would be prohibitively expensive.
The proposed Stonepeak acquisition will now move through the Chicago City Council review process, where officials will evaluate the transfer and determine whether to approve the transaction.
