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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region Forums'Robin Hoods' who feed parking meters are hit with lawsuit in New Hampshire
http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/05/15/18274592-robin-hoods-who-feed-parking-meters-are-hit-with-lawsuit-in-new-hampshireThe city of Keene says its three parking inspectors have been taunted, insulted and followed by the group to the point that one of them says he has suffered heart palpitations and is thinking about quitting his job....
The city is upset because they are losing revenue and are coming up with anything they can to try to stop it, he said.
He also noted that the citys job description for parking inspectors, included as part of the lawsuit, requires that inspectors endure verbal and mental abuse when confronted with the hostile views and opinions of the public.
liberal N proud
(60,347 posts)Otherwise, what difference does it make who pays for the parking?
NYC Liberal
(20,137 posts)is allowed to feed the meter? Then they can fine the person for not paying, and fine the person who paid for them!
Response to NYC Liberal (Reply #4)
liberal N proud This message was self-deleted by its author.
pokerfan
(27,677 posts)How could this be, I asked a very polite and sympathetic parking coordinator? After all, I've been refeeding meters for years and never gotten a ticket. Plus, if I park in a free one or two hour zone in a residential area and I need to stay longer, I always make sure to move my car to the other side of the street to avoid a fine. Apparently, according to the woman, I'd been lucky in all cases. How about you?
She said that meter time limit zones were just that. If it's a one-hour meter, you cannot stay beyond that time limit, and if someone catches you in the act you are subject to a fine. She said that sometimes they chalk a car (which I thought only happened in free parking areas on residential streets), and sometimes they actually look at the mileage if they are able to do so. In any event, they are within their rights to ticket you.
What if I simply moved my car to the next meter? She said the one-hour limit was for the entire street. Even if I moved it to the other side of the road, which I often did when I was coming to the end of a two hour residential parking limit? This, too, was illegal for a twenty-four hour period. Even if it were a huge avenue, like, let's say, Beverly Boulevard, I couldn't park at a meter across the street? She said that in all such instances it was necessary to move to an entirely different block.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/michael-russnow/you-can-be-ticketed-for-f_b_111120.html
pokerfan
(27,677 posts)http://www.upnorthlive.com/news/story.aspx?id=757273
AngryAmish
(25,704 posts)(BTW, I agree with these guys)
Business owners want a certain turnover so customers can park near the store. Imagine owning an ice cream shop and there was a large office building across the street. You don't want workers taking all the spots for your customers all day long.
KamaAina
(78,249 posts)and the city is getting all the revenue it is entitled to from those meters, because the Robin Hooders are plugging them.
The city is not entitled to revenue from tickets, though it apparently thinks it is.
AngryAmish
(25,704 posts)Bake
(21,977 posts)So the business owners don't get to dictate who can park on city streets/parking spots.
Bake
AngryAmish
(25,704 posts)It is nice to get coffee. It is nice to buy a loaf of bread. It is nice to go to karate lessons.
I live in a big city. People live everywhere. They also like to have cars. The residents would take up all the spots 24 hours a day if allowed. I would not visit another neighborhood very often (especially with 2 kids) if I could not find parking. And having metered spaces means the people that live in that neighborhood have to find a place to store their car other than at the meters.
So, you may think business owners suck for wanting metered spots, their customers are glad they are there.
Bake
(21,977 posts)I think they suck for wanting to dictate who can and cannot park in them.
If you can drop a quarter in the meter before the cops ticket you, as far as I'm concerned, you get to park there.
The meters are there for the benefit of the city, not the business owners.
Bake
AngryAmish
(25,704 posts)so, cheers!
Bake
(21,977 posts)Bake
IdaBriggs
(10,559 posts)One of the inspectors, Linda Desruisseaux, said that one of the six liked to taunt her by saying, Linda, guess what youre not going to do today write tickets..
Where can I donate?
Oh boy, oh boy, I hope this goes viral!
And Ms. Desruisseaux had better think twice about applying for a meter maid job down in Boston. There, ticketed drivers rarely "taunt" the meter maids -- they've been known to slug them!
piratefish08
(3,133 posts)"They were orchestrated by members of the Free State Projecta plan, hatched in 2001, to get 20,000 libertarian activists to quit their jobs, sell their homes, and relocate to New Hampshire en masse. It is a political movement in the most literal sense."
"Slowly, they have begun to infiltrate the ranks of state and local government; last November, 13 Free Staters won election to the New Hampshire Legislature. As the state gears up for its presidential primary early next year, it is in the midst of a political takeover."
KamaAina
(78,249 posts)i.e. not Ron or Rand Paul.
I would certainly prefer an influx of libertarians to the similar project proposed for South Carolina in which fundies are invited to move in and take over!
sharp_stick
(14,400 posts)Pays a few people to run around and feed meters. They give them quarters and tell them to feed a meter once if they see one at zero or almost at zero.
The rule though is that they will only feed it once (giving an extra 20 minutes) for any car.
KamaAina
(78,249 posts)Problem solved.
Raven
(13,904 posts)folks are Freestaters http://freestateproject.org/ and they are not very nice to anybody. I don't think anyone should be abused for trying to do their job.
ZombieHorde
(29,047 posts)"We" say we don't like crime and we need to decrease it, yet "we" rely on it.
CBGLuthier
(12,723 posts)Feed the meters if you must but abusing people doing their jobs and then saying it is part of their jobs to take the abuse is a crock of shit.
Speaking from the city where the meters were invented I think that people must realize that without these meters there would be no available parking as those who work will take very space. Yes they generate revenue as do the fines but without them human nature would insist on creating a cluster fuck.
Aerows
(39,961 posts)get's upset because they can't fine people that have a paid meter, they need to either come up with another source of revenue or let go some of the meter readers. You don't create crime or encourage crime just so that you can keep "peace keepers" employed.
That's what these meter readers are upset about - they might not have a job if their justification for existence goes away.
Sorry, I'm always for having fewer authority figures when they aren't needed. I feel the same about defense spending. I'm glad when we aren't at war, and don't have criminals to be apprehended.