Summit, Argo and the 59th Street tracks
Summit-Argo is really two places in one village. Argo grew up as a company-town area around 63rd Street, next to the Corn Products plant built in 1907, and joined Summit in 1911. The Indiana Harbor Belt tracks at 59th Street still split it from the older part of the village, and Argo has its own business strip on 63rd.
For a pickup that matters. Tell us which side of the tracks you’re on and give a cross street, because the quickest route depends on it. Archer Avenue, Harlem Avenue and the Stevenson Expressway all pass through, so we can reach either side.
Three days for a dead car
Summit doesn’t wait a week. Its nuisance code says a rusted, wrecked, junked, partly dismantled or inoperative car left on private property more than 72 hours is a nuisance, plates or no plates, though the code lists exceptions. If your car has been parked out back since it failed, you are likely past that line already.
Fixing it at the curb isn’t an option either. Summit bars using the street to wash, grease or repair a car outside an emergency, and it bans parking in alleys altogether. About four in ten Summit homes are in buildings of two or more units, so if the car sits in a shared lot, say so when you call.
On the public side, a vehicle that is in disrepair and unmoved for seven days counts as abandoned and can be towed after a window sticker and a mailed notice.
Snow, stickers and the floodplain
- Snow. Parking ends on posted snow routes once snow passes 2 inches, and at 3 inches it is restricted on every street until cleared.
- Overnight. The 4 to 6 a.m. ban covers only Archer Road, 63rd Street and Harlem Avenue, so don’t leave a dead car on those three.
- Stickers. The sticker year starts July 1, and the fee doubles after that. Deciding about a dying car before July saves buying a sticker for it.
- Water. Most of Summit sits in the Des Plaines River floodplain. We buy flood-damaged cars as they are.
Paperwork without the guesswork
A title in your name is best. If you can’t find it, tell us what you have, for example registration, an old bill of sale or an insurance card, and we’ll check what Illinois accepts for a scrap sale before scheduling. Our guide to selling a junk car without a title in Illinois explains the rules in more depth.
We haul it off free and pay you when we pick it up. We also serve Bedford Park to the south and Lyons to the north; see our areas we cover for more.
Selling a car in Summit: common questions
Can I fix my car on the street in front of my Summit home?
Only emergency repairs. Summit bars parking on a street to wash, grease or repair a car, and a separate section bars repairs on the roadway or public right of way except in an emergency. If the fix is a big one, the car has to come off the street.
Is a junk car in my Summit backyard a problem if no one can see it from the street?
The 72-hour nuisance rule in 6-5-1 covers vehicles left on private property, plated or not, and exceptions apply. Tell us where it sits and we can plan a pickup from the yard, the garage or the alley side of the lot.