Lincoln Park billionaire accused of fueling rat infestation
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios
The city is planning legal action against Lincoln Park billionaire Barre Seid over claims that his nut-spreading operation is fueling a rat infestation around Green City Market, Ald. Timmy Knudsen (43rd) says.
Why it matters: The infestation is causing property damage that could leave taxpayers on the hook for repairs, according to city documents.
- Plus, Knudsen says Seid's nut-spreading activities have expanded in recent months, even as the city has ramped up citations against him.
Of note: Seid has paid all the fines and tickets without contesting the violations.
Context: This isn't the Chicago industrialist's first time in the headlines.
- Seid, 94, made news in 2022 for donating $1.6 billion to a conservative political action group run by Leonard Leo, in what is considered the biggest political advocacy donation in history.
Catch up quick: "For more than three years," Seid has "hired individuals to place nuts, seeds and other foods around" his home, then expanded to Lincoln Park where they place food "around and in trees and throughout the park," a 43rd Ward document states.
- After years of citations, Knudsen issued a final warning letter to Seid last August noting that "the feeding has created a public health hazard," attracting "flocks of pigeons, whose droppings have in turn attracted a significant rat infestation."
- The letter demanded that Seid stop the feeding, "secure all garbage …in rodent-safe containers" and "take corrective measures against the harborage to rats" within 15 days. But the billionaire has not responded.
What they're saying: "When we exhaust our aldermanic authority, which is typically through [Streets and San], we have to get creative, and that's why we're pushing the park district to file a lawsuit for damage to the park," Knudsen tells Axios.
- "The rat burrows have gotten so much bigger where these nuts are being laid out and the Green City Market vendors are seeing the rats during setup. It's creating an unfortunate situation in a beautiful part of the park."
The other side: Seid — who owned Chicago's Tripp Lite electronics company — did not answer when Axios rang his doorbell Tuesday. A woman recently answered the door to a WGN crew but closed it without comment.
Zoom in: When asked by neighbors and park staff why they spread the nuts, Seid's workers have responded with "hostile" language but no explanation, neighbor Caroline Novak tells Axios.
Between the lines: While the Seids aren't explaining their actions, the dishes of water and cracked nut shells Axios noticed on their porch Tuesday suggest they may just like feeding wildlife.
- This adds a new layer of complexity to Barre Seid's prodigious funding of climate denialism.
Axios reached out to the Park District about the status of legal action but did not immediately hear back.
What's next: As Knudsen waits for action from the Park District, he's using the situation as a springboard for a campaign he's calling "Feed your neighbors not the rats" to support a local hunger nonprofit, Dignity Diner.
- The alderman is matching contributions up to $1,000 and says donors had almost reached that amount by Tuesday.