A Park Ridge taxi company is again facing the loss of its legal ability to operate in the city.
The Park Ridge City Council on Jan. 13 tentatively agreed to revoke Park Ridge Dispatch’s Certificate of Operation after receiving word that the company had reportedly not paid a required $500 fee to do business in Park Ridge and that its owner had been arrested for driving on a suspended license, among other issues.
Park Ridge Police Chief Frank Kaminski noted that the company, which previously operated for many years as Park Ridge Taxi, had a “not in good standing” status with the Illinois Secretary of State Office and its owner, Ivelin Dinev, was cited by police in December for driving a company taxi with a suspended license and expired registration. Additionally, Dinev does not have a current chauffeur license with the city, Kaminski said. For these reasons, the city is seeking to revoke Park Ridge Dispatch’s certificate of operation, the police chief told the council.
The matter is expected to return to the council on Jan. 21 for final consideration.
As of Jan. 17, the Secretary of State’s database of corporations identified Park Ridge Dispatch as having been involuntarily dissolved on Jan. 10.
Under local ordinance, cab companies must have a certificate of operation in order to pick up and drop off fares within Park Ridge city limits and have cars waiting at the city’s designated taxi stand near the Uptown Metra station.
In August 2017, the City Council revoked Park Ridge Dispatch’s certificate of operation after the company was unable to provide proper proof of insurance, but the certificate was reissued later that year.
Dinev, who was not present for the Jan. 13 public hearing to consider the fate of his company’s certificate, told the Park Ridge Herald-Advocate that he is unable to renew his certificate of operation because his company owes back rent to the city for space it previously leased in the Uptown train station.
The taxi office is currently empty.
Dinev pointed to a local ordinance that prohibits taxi companies from obtaining a certificate of operation from the city if they owe the municipality money.
“No certificate of operation shall be issued to or held by any person who is delinquent on the payment of any debts due and owing the City,” the ordinance states.
Park Ridge Director of Finance Andrea Lamberg confirmed that Park Ridge Dispatch owes the city $3,250 for five months of unpaid rent.
Lamberg said even if the rent and $500 annual fee is paid by the company, the city is not renewing its certificate of operation due to its status with the Secretary of State and the owner’s lack of a chauffeur license.
“There’s a number of issues and he needs to be in compliance with all of them,” she said.
Dinev acknowledged that his company is still picking up fares in Park Ridge and will continue to do so, even without a certificate of operation.
“Pretty much everybody is picking up in Park Ridge,” he said, referring to other companies that do not have certificates approved by the city.
Dinev added that he is working to merge with another company, Taxi One, which obtained the rights to the Park Ridge Taxi name. He acknowledged that his driver’s license had been suspended, but said he was not driving passengers at the time of the traffic stop and is not taking fares currently.
Kaminski indicated that police will begin ticketing Park Ridge Dispatch vehicles that are doing business in the city once the company’s certificate is formally revoked.
Park Ridge does not require a certificate of operation or annual fee from ride sharing companies, a matter that was debated by aldermen in 2017. Ultimately, the council reached a consensus to keep the city’s current regulations for taxis in place.
The last company to have its certificate of operation revoked was Pink Taxi in 2018. The revocation occurred after the company failed to renew its annual livery licenses, which are issued for each vehicle the company uses, the city said.
Twitter: @Jen_Tribune
