Guess who I saw on T.V. today!! Detroit on "Parking Wars"

[Axle]

And your intent in bumping a 2 1/2 year old thread?

When you are new to a forum, or have been away for a while, you tend to start reading threads, and not look at the date. If something strikes you, you hit reply and carry on. Sometimes you notice that you are replying to an old thread, sometimes you don't. You should look at it this way: The topics here are interesting enough to keep somebody engaged for some time.

As for parking wars... They [parking enforcement/tow yards] are all a little too focused on the beurocracy of it all.

Alex.

[cramerro]

i'm complaining that meter maids often ticket people in 10 minutes or less after a meter expires. or they ticket people when there are plenty of other open spaces [[if no open parking spaces was the 'problem' , why ticket people when there are spaces available?). or they ticket people even when the car owners run out and put another quarter in the machine while the ticket is being written. did you even watch 'parking wars' ??

the tickets arent that big of a deal. its the boots and the towing that bugs me. i've heard lots about people who leave their cars at bars overnight [[to avoid drunk driving), only to get towed. or multiple people who parked in a 'wrong area' and got towed [[there was a huge towing story in the news recently about this). or that they can be towed for just about any reason. the towers dont have to leave a note or anything and you have to call the cops to see if your car was stolen!

then taxpayers have to pay for these meters [[in some cases) ? and then pay to have meter maids, towers, boots, impound yards, etc? i'd rather cut meter maids and pay for more firefighters...

Yes, I watch the show quite often. I see the 'characters' around downtown when I walk around, it's pretty cool.

As for the "agressive" meter maids writing a ticket after it has "only been expired for 10 minutes"... seriously? How the hell are they supposed to know how long it has been expired? Should they wait at every meter they find expired for a few minutes to make sure you weren't on your way out and just got held up? Talk about a real waste of time and taxpayer money.

And what is the difference if its 10 minutes or 10 hours? Either you paid for your time there or you didn't. It's the same argument people give that they were going 'downhill' and got a ticket for going 60 in a 45 zone. It's not the cops fault that you can't watch your speed, or in this case that you can't tell time. And why would it matter if there are other spaces open? It's about enforcing the rules... like the same reason you can't run a red light just because there was nobody to stop for, and you can't park in front of a fire hydrant just becuase there isn't a fire. To quote Seinfeld, "We're trying to have a civilization here!"

The same applies for booting and towing, when it is for unpaid tickets. They send you notices, and you have to have multiple tickets that are unpaid. There is no excuse. When they mess up [[mis-enter the plate, etc) that sucks, and I have seen two episodes where they double-checked with home dispatch and found the error, removing the boot. Also sucks when you buy a car and it is on the boot list [[but you can fix that by getting clear title/new plate), and when a family member gets tickets for you. But still, that is not the fault of the parking guys, all things you should be aware of and address before you're seen on the show throwing a fit.

I strongly agree that the towing to prevent break-ins story was crazy, although that was a DPD operation and not the call/action of the parking enforcement [[since they weren't enforcing the law?) from what I understand.

Am I a model citizen who doesn't break the law or bend the rules? Abosultely not. But when I get caught, I don't make up some reason why it wasn't my fault.

[Mark Smiles]

Local governments get to collect revenue from writing parking tickets for handicapped space violations.

This means that it is ok for the local government to use private parking lots as revenue sources.

Local downtowns are always complaining that it is not fair that they have to compete against the Walmarts, with plenty of free parking.

Well ....

Why not have local government install parking meters at all shopping centers like Walmart.

The revenue collected can be split with the mom and pop stores “downtown” and the city.

This will help level the playing field, making things more fair for downtown merchants.

This will also provide a source of revenue to hire more government workers to enforce the law concerning the meters.

What is not to like?

[cramerro]

Local governments get to collect revenue from writing parking tickets for handicapped space violations.

This means that it is ok for the local government to use private parking lots as revenue sources.

Local downtowns are always complaining that it is not fair that they have to compete against the Walmarts, with plenty of free parking.

Well ....

Why not have local government install parking meters at all shopping centers like Walmart.

The revenue collected can be split with the mom and pop stores “downtown” and the city.

This will help level the playing field, making things more fair for downtown merchants.

This will also provide a source of revenue to hire more government workers to enforce the law concerning the meters.

What is not to like?

First of all, the legal and practical basis for writing parking tickets [[i.e. handicapped spaces) is enforcement. The spaces are there for handicapped people, and without an enforcement measure, they won't be available. It is not a law created as a revenue source, even if it generates revenue... the laws also say it has to be a reasonable fee [[and it can be adjusted by elected officials!).

Second of all, Walmart owns thier parking lot, unlike downtown streets and muinicipal lots, which are owned [[and paid for, maintained, etc) by the municipality. Walmart offsets thier cost by making money at the store, they construct and maintain the lot as part of the economics of operating thier business. Municipalities use taxes [[that are theoretically improved by having convenient parking for businesses). Unfortunately, smaller businesses that are in downtown areas lack the land area and financial fortitude to fund thier own parking areas, which is where DDA, TIFA, and Chambers of Commerce are helpful in pooling resources.

Third of all, there are other ways to level the playing field, namely to stop trying to compete with Walmart. There is a growing sentiment backed up by consumer surveys and spending trends that people are increasingly placing value in personal service, locally-made products and locally-owned businesses. Once you and your downtown mates stop trying to undercut Walmart's prices on cheap plastic watering cans [[it can't be done!), you can focus on custom decorated cans, or maybe some made from recylced materials, or maybe one made by and/or benefitting local physically impaired children.

Expanding the coverage of meters is not the answer - the whole argument of free parking is a myth that is an outdated battle cry of failing downtown merchants. If you make a unique destination for customers, then you will succeed... not beacuse you have free parking or the mall has meters.

[compn]

It's the same argument people give that they were going 'downhill' and got a ticket for going 60 in a 45 zone. It's not the cops fault that you can't watch your speed, or in this case that you can't tell time. And why would it matter if there are other spaces open? It's about enforcing the rules... like the same reason you can't run a red light just because there was nobody to stop for, and you can't park in front of a fire hydrant just becuase there isn't a fire. To quote Seinfeld, "We're trying to have a civilization here!"

you can compare parking meter enforcement with safety enforcement [[speeding and parking in front of a fire hydrant). its the same thing!

i see i'm not getting anywhere so i'll stop. i like the walmart parking meter idea, unrealistic, but funny.