CTA Orders Company To Clean Garage Covered In Pigeon Poop
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The CTA has ordered the company that runs the "Kiss n' Ride" parking garage at the Cumberland Blue Line stop to clean the place up. The place is overrun by pigeons and some fear it may become a health hazard.
As CBS2's Mike Parker reports, pigeons are everywhere at the parking garage for the Cumberland stop – lurking on every floor of the huge garage. They're birds of a feather, all right, and wreaking havoc with some pretty fancy car exteriors.
"There are pigeon droppings, and I wouldn't be surprised if there were bats up there as well," said garage user Mark Gelula.
CBS 2 found no bats at the garage, only pigeons and mounds of droppings all over – some of them two to three inches deep.
Professional bird chaser Joe Seid toured the garage and said, "Maybe it's cleaned occasionally, but it appears it's not cleaned very frequently."
Seid said he's concerned about the health danger, not the paint jobs of the cars.
"If the droppings get airborne and you breathe it in, it could take a long time to take effect but it can be deadly," he said.
Late Tuesday, after CBS 2 called to report what we found, the CTA ordered Central Parking Services to take action.
The company, which manages and maintains the garage, was told to install devices to discourage roosting. The transit agency also ordered that the "area be thoroughly cleaned" and said those "efforts will be monitored and evaluated for effectiveness."
The CTA also said "the safety, security and well being of our customers and employees" is a top priority.
--CBS 2 Producer Ed Marshall contributed to this report.
