The city has received more than 800 sidewalk cafe applications this year. Nearly 400 of them have come in since March, when BACP closed its offices and began processing licenses online. So far, 324 permits have been issued, with another 417 “approved and in the final stages of issuance,” according to the city's Department of Business Affairs and Consumer Protection
A largely unasked question is becoming glaring: Is Illinois doing all it should to use artificial intelligence to make government cost less and work better? So far, the evidence says no.