Business Licenses and Permits

In Illinois, a bike-powered pub crawl company has filed a petition asking for the Cook County Circuit Court to overturn its decision to deny a business license.

PedalPub Chicago is already a popular business in 13 other cities in the U.S. It is a 16-seat bicycle that users must peddle to each bar along one of three approved routes.

However, it is not the nature of the business that has put off Cook County officials. The Chicago Sun-Times reported that they see the bikes as a sightseeing business, which, according to city code, must be powered by a motor.

“We’re not giving sightseeing tours, we’re saying rent us and drive our 16-person ‘bicycle’ around town,” Al Boyce, owner of Minnesota-based PedalPub, told the news provider. He explained that the business is seeking a limited business license, not a permit to run tours.

Joy Adelizzi, a deputy commissioner in the city’s Business Affairs and Consumer Protection office, wrote in a letter that PedalPub must apply for a licensed public passenger vehicle, which “by definition” has a motor.

Tags: business licenses, business permits, licenses, permits