The owner of a Southeast Side car-shredding operation should have received a city permit to operate last year, an administrative judge ruled Thursday. 

Administrative Judge Mitchell Ex made his ruling through a written order after hearing arguments over the past year from lawyers for the business and City Hall. 

In early 2022, then-Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s administration denied the permit for the operation. 

Lawyers for the business argued that the firm had followed rules that should have allowed it to receive the city permit. 

City lawyers defended the decision, stating that Lightfoot’s Public Health Commissioner, Dr. Allison Arwady, had acted within her authority to block the business from opening.

The relocation of General Iron from white, wealthy Lincoln Park to a Southeast Side community of color spurred a federal civil rights investigation that determined Chicago’s planning, zoning and land-use policies were discriminatory. 

As she was leaving office last month, Lightfoot signed an agreement with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development vowing to reform city policies and practices.

Brett Chase’s reporting on the environment and public health is made possible by a grant from The Chicago Community Trust.