Chicago’s Chinatown neighborhood now has its own Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) facility.
Key points:
- Chinatown‘s first-ever “express DMV” opened at Canal Street and Archer Avenue on April 15, reported ABC7.
- Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias, State Rep. Theresa Mah, State Sen. Celina Villanueva and Chicago Alderwoman Nicole Lee attended the inauguration.
- The facility features a multilingual staff and a streamlined design that promises to reduce customer wait times.
The details:
- Touted by Giannoulias as a “one-stop shop,” the DMV will be “strictly a walk-in facility, which means you don’t need to schedule an appointment.”
- Services include REAL ID applications, license and state ID renewals, vehicle registration, organ donor registry and voter registration, all available at a singular counter.
- Aside from Chinatown, the DMV will also serve neighboring communities such as Pilsen, Bronzeville, Bridgeport and the South Loop. The facility will be manned by employees who speak Mandarin, Cantonese and Spanish.
- Lee underscored the collaborative efforts behind the initiative and noted the DMV’s impact in Chinatown. “It’s an incredible signal to our community of the importance of our growing community,” Lee said. “We’re the only growing Chinatown nationwide and Asian Americans represent the fastest-growing minority group in Illinois and across the United States.”
What’s next:
- Giannoulias expressed that he intends to replicate the “one-stop shop” model in other DMV facilities statewide.
