Aldermen Advance Ban On Horse-Drawn Carriages, After Years Of Wrangling With Industry They Say 'Refuses To Comply With The Law'
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Fed up with an industry they say has routinely violated city regulations, and refused to clean up its act, the two aldermen who represent downtown Chicago convinced colleagues on the License Committee to ban horse-drawn carriages starting next year.
The License Committee on Wednesday voted to approve an ordinance to phase out all 10 of the city's existing horse-drawn carriage licenses by Jan. 1, 2021.
Horse-drawn carriage rides along the Magnificent Mile, and other parts of downtown and the Near North Side have proven popular among tourists. But Ald. Brian Hopkins (2nd) said the city issues hundreds of violations every year for carriage operations that violate rules regarding safety and animal care.
"The fact remains that we do have specific rules that are laid out, and this industry has operated in consistent violation of those rules," he said.
Fellow downtown Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) said the city has more pressing priorities than to have to issue hundreds of citations every year for an industry that brings in only about $15,000 in annual revenue from licensing fees and taxes.
"To be tying up the Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection with hundreds of complaints every season because the industry refuses to comply with the law, I'm sorry, we have given you lots of room to operate and to shape up, and you've failed miserably," he said.
It's not the first time the City Council has debated proposals to ban horse-drawn carriages. In 2014, Ald. Edward Burke (14th) proposed a similar ban -- calling the carriages a traffic hazard, a nuisance, and cruel to animals -- but it failed to pass.
Another proposed ban introduced in 2017 also failed to pass. The ban approved on Wednesday underwent several revisions after it was introduced last summer, before finally getting a committee vote.
Horse carriage owners and drivers accused the city of putting them out of business for no reason, claiming people who have accused them of animal cruelty of lying.
Larry Ortega, owner of Chicago Horse & Carriage, noted the horses used by the industry are regularly examined by veterinarians and would be taken off the streets if they weren't being treated properly.
He also accused the city of setting a double standard by banning horse-drawn carriages while keeping the Chicago Police Department's mounted unit intact.
"Work animals, either pulling a carriage or a mounted police horse, see their job as adapting, communicating, socializing with humans. To think that the city is fine for a mounted police horse but not a carriage horse is blatantly hypocritical," he said.
Ald. Raymond Lopez (15th), an outspoken animal rights advocate, however, said the city has shown little interest over the years in truly enforcing the rules for the carriage industry, or for protecting the horses.
"Our department is woefully inept at regulating you, and their lack of interest is evident even today," he said. "This has got to come to an end, and thankfully we're finally here,"
Donald Geldernick, a carriage driver for Antique Coach & Carriage, called the ban "some kind of new discrimination" against horses.
"Pick on the one who can't speak. He's the one with no voice," he said. "The horse likes being out here. They get water. It's an absolute lie that they don't get water. It's an absolute lie that they work over 90 degrees."
Reilly, however, defended the many animal rights activists who have filed complaints with the city regarding the carriage companies' treatment of horses.
"You have folks who care about the welfare of animals calling the city to enforce the laws that are on the books. You can't characterize those folks as telling lies. They would be lying if the city hadn't issued hundreds upon hundreds of violations of the law that is intended to protect these animals," Reilly said.
Reilly said the ban gives carriage companies one more year to operate and make money, to figure out what to do next with their horses.
"We do believe that giving the industry one more year of revenue to disentangle, and make other plans, and focus their businesses in other communities – perhaps in the suburbs or neighboring states – we thought that was an appropriate compromise," he said.
The proposed horse-drawn carriage ban now goes to the full City Council for a vote next week.
