Chicago Is Being Amazonified
Chicago recently made headlines for turning public parks space over to Amazon package lockers. But those lockers are only one example of Amazon and public officials using public-private “partnerships” to give away public resources and harm communities.
Thanks to a deal Amazon cut with Chicago’s parks department, 49 Amazon lockers were recently deployed in public parks. (Photo courtesy Rossana Rodriguez)
Residents of Chicago who went for a stroll in a local park recently might have come upon an unexpected obstruction: an Amazon locker partially blocking their path. Thanks to a deal Amazon cut with the city’s parks department, forty-nine Amazon lockers — where customers can pick up and leave packages — were deployed in public parks, with another fifty-three planned for future placement.
Amazon installs huge lockers on a Chicago park’s sidewalk, confusing and frustrating neighbors https://t.co/LfhE8pbRXl pic.twitter.com/4448f4DimF
— Block Club Chicago (@BlockClubCHI) August 14, 2021
Parkgoers and local lawmakers quickly revolted against the private co-option of public space. The outrage increased after the nonprofit news organization Block Club Chicago used a public records request to reveal that the city would receive, at most, $137,600 in payment from Amazon, which made a $7.8 billion profit last quarter alone.
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