2018–2023
per ticket
collected
per season average
What We Requested and What We Got
In August 2023, we filed a Freedom of Information Act request with the City of Chicago asking for all parking ticket records issued under the LV2 residential permit zone violation code from 2018 through mid-2023.
The city responded with a spreadsheet containing 9,434 individual ticket records, each including the street address, violation date, time of day, fine amount, and payment status.
The Streets Where Tickets Happen Most
Enforcement is not evenly distributed. The blocks immediately east of the park on Sheffield, Kenmore, and Clifton get the heaviest enforcement. These are the streets where fans park thinking they're just outside the lot area, when they're squarely inside the LV2 zone.
The full street-level data is plotted on the interactive LV2 heat map. The red streets are high-enforcement. Yellow is medium.
When Tickets Are Issued: Game Type Breakdown
| Game/event type | Share of total tickets | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Weekend day games (Sat/Sun, 1:20 PM) | Highest concentration | Most visitors, highest foot traffic, fans underestimate LV2 timing |
| Weeknight games (7:05 PM) | High | LV2 starts at 5 PM, well before game time. Fans arriving at 6:30 PM find their spot was valid at 4 PM but not now. |
| Weekday day games (Mon–Fri, 1:20 PM) | Moderate | Lower attendance, fewer enforcement officers deployed |
| Major concerts | High | Concert crowds less familiar with LV2 rules than regular game attendees |
The Three Most Common Mistakes
1. Parking before 5 PM for a day game and not coming back
A 1:20 PM game typically ends around 3:30–4:30 PM. The LV2 zone doesn't activate until 5 PM. Many people park at 11 AM, go to the game, and assume they're fine because they arrived before enforcement hours. If the game goes long or they stick around for a drink nearby, their car sits in the LV2 zone after 5 PM and gets ticketed.
2. Parking one block inside the zone without checking the signs
The LV2 boundary is not intuitive. Sheffield Avenue inside the zone looks identical to streets one block east outside it. Without checking the green-and-white LV2 sign, it's easy to assume you're fine. The blocks closest to the park on Sheffield and Kenmore have the highest ticket density in the entire dataset.
3. Assuming a postponed game means no enforcement
If a game is postponed but the announcement comes after people have already parked, enforcement may still occur. LV2 Park updates its status when it detects a postponement in the API, but enforcement on the ground can lag. When a postponement is announced, the safest move is to move your car immediately rather than waiting to see if enforcement shows up.
What Changed After 2020
The 2020 season (no fans, shortened 60-game schedule) shows nearly zero LV2 tickets in our data. That was the clearest possible evidence that LV2 enforcement is directly tied to game attendance, not just game scheduling.
When fans returned in 2021, ticket counts returned to pre-pandemic levels almost immediately. The 2021 and 2022 seasons show the highest per-game ticket rates in the dataset, possibly due to pent-up demand bringing larger crowds and more unfamiliar fans.
How to Use This Data to Avoid a Ticket
- Avoid Sheffield, Kenmore, and Clifton on game days. These streets get the most enforcement officer attention.
- Park north of Irving Park Road or south of Belmont if you want street parking. You're outside the zone.
- For weekend day games: Either park before 11 AM and return before 5 PM, or don't park on the street at all.
- Check LV2 status before you leave. lv2park.com updates every morning and again at 3 PM.
The interactive heat map shows ticket density by street. Enter your address to see the enforcement history for your block.