Parking Meter Outrage Continues Across City
Addicted to spending, a City with a Mayor who is disbursing like a druken sailor at a rate 1/3 higher than when he took office a scant three years ago, Los Angeles is looking for every place possible to squeeze the populace for their last dime.
One of the ways our brilliant leaders are doing so is by increasing parking meter rates, extending the hours and days the meters are in service and reducing the amount of time motorists can park in business districts. In some cases meters are being extended as late as midnight (instead of the customary 6:00 p.m. deadline) and on Sundays as well (which always used to be free all day).
These last two points in particular have live theater owners in the fledgling NoHo Arts District fuming. After many lean years during subway and other construction the foot traffic that has finally come to patronize theaters, galleries and other businesses in the once downtrodden neighborhood is being severly impacted by the City's recent moves. The changes to hours and rates for parking meters are forcing patrons to leave theatres during the middle of shows to either feed the meter or move their vehicles. The City spent billions to build the NoHo District and now for a few million at most they're killing it.
One a silly piece in CurbedLA that claims meters are good because the funds earned by the no-armed bandits are used to revitalize the surrounding area. Not true in LA. Never true in LA. Previously parking meter money was banked in the local Council office as sort of a slush fund for the Clowncil members; until budget realities and bad PR forced them to give that up to the general fund. Now money earned in North Hollywood or Highland Park meters are being spent on potholes in San Pedro, tree trimming in Granada Hills or the Mayor's travel budget.
The bozos in City Hall won't admit - they're addicted to spending and like a crack whore who must turn her next trick to get some more blow, the Mayor and Clowncil spokes-holes rationalize with silly nonsense about how raising parking fees will cut traffic.
However until the people in this town wake the F up and get a clue as to what's going on they will like sheep continue to put more of their hard earned money into the meters oblivious that they have a say-so and then drive over to neighboring cities - like Burbank - who don't have parking meters.
Labels: city budget, mayor antonio villaraigosa, noho arts district, notes from la, parking meters
Posted by Michael Higby @ 1/05/2009 10:00:00 AM
14 Comments:
So the people should get more cops, more firefighters, more paved streets, arts centers and who knows what and not pay for it?
The people are already paying for it.
The City should reduce its wasteful spending - you can start with the Council and Mayor's HUGE staffs most of whom make $100K per year or more.
And stop with the business killing measures like this. If the city cut taxes and relaxed the regulatory environment they'd see revenues increase and the economy flourish.
Heather from Northridge here. Its really silly for clowncil to even think they will generate more money from meters. go downtown to where all the illegal vendors are and around the 4th, 5th, toy district and up and down the blocks the illegal vendors have signs posted on the meters saying "not working." No one is paying into the meters.
Someone please post Doug McIntyre's interview Jill Stewart's of LA Weekly. Great job!! She slammed the Mayor on all sides and called him Pinocchiogosa. She laid him out and stated what we all know that he works less then an hour a day and only goes to photo ops of announcements and openings. He's a joke and even the New York Times has caught on.
I think it is wonderful that the meters are higher.
The populace elected these idiots to office. Now they're bleeding us to death.
Collectively, it serves us right. Once enough people have been bled by this, or with the ATM parking meters that are coming, or we get enough parking tickets, maybe enough people will look at who's in the local elected offices.
I have the extra quarters to pay. Do you? Don't like it? Then do something about it.
If you don't do something about it, then tough s*it. I've got no sympathy for people who are too lame to do a damn thing about this.
Why is it that some parts of the city (L.A) has no parking meters?
There are no parking meters in El Sereno (CD-14)On Huntington Dr.?
We should all be treated equliy.....
As infuriating as this meter money grab is, 1:01 is on to something. The act of feeding a meter is literally quarters, nickels, and dimes out of your pocket and into the city piggybank.
Getting so much less for so much more could actually wake people up. It's a gift to the insurgent candidate … what better battle cry than "Roll back the parking rates!"
I was at Marina Del Rey, where there are a all those parking meters. The city has the nerve to post a warning that if you park at a "failed" meter you can get a ticket.
SO IN OTHER WORDS...PARKING IS A HUGE PROBLEM...and you are removing parking spaces because of YOUR broken meter!?!?!
Zuma Dogg as Mayor would instruct parking enforcement to NOT issue a ticket if someone is parked at a FAILED meter, because we cannot lose parking spaces over it. HOWEVER, you must still follow the posted restrictions and times limits.
Villaraiogsa's meter policy is as anti-Deming as you can get.
You can't accept money because of YOUR broken meter, then you punish the customer. Yeaaaaaaaaah, right!
These meter increases also hurt the small, community-owned businesses.
For example, I put a nickle in a parking meter in Los Angeles and got 1 minute. (one minute)
So this will cause people to go to the malls with free parking. GOODBYE locally owned businesses. Why put up with the added meter expense, when you can just park at malls for free.
Zuma Dogg as mayor was thinking of "free meter monday". Instead of EXTENDING meter hours, as Villaraiogsa is doing, imagine what a boost it would be to business if you had free meters on Monday, too. That way, you can try it out and see if you notice a big impact in local business and see if it is worth the loss of meter revenue.
THE MAYOR HAS EXTENDED THE NIGHTIME PARKING HOURS BEYOND THE PREVIOUS 6PM TIME, WHEN IT WAS FREE. Way to help stimulate the economy, Dummiraiogsa.
Is it possibe for Zuma Doggie to post a comment without pimping his campaign?
If you have ideas, boy, then put them out there. The few dozen people on this blog know you're running already.
You are going to cause Villaraigosa to win if you syphon votes away from Moore & Hernandez.
We can thank Bill Rosendahl for this one, his "gold in the gutter" idea. But they were all under pressure to come up with something to save moola. It is ironic however that a nice guy like that may be the one whose idea helps kill the small shops that rely on street meters -- the same ones opposing rush-hour no parking on their streets to move traffic on main boulevards. But I haven't heard anything from chambers of commerce on this, maybe it will work out and there will just be more and faster turnover from those who do shop there like they hope. And maybe it will free up more meters for those who need to grab something in-out in 10 mins.
6:55pm,
First of all, yes, it IS possible that I post without referencing my campaign. Check the blog. I haven't really mentioned it in my posts on this blog. So check it out, before you pop off at the mouth.
Secondly, I hope you don't think that Walter or Hernandez have a chance of beating Villaraigosa in the general election? That is the only way ZD could hurt their chances.
Because otherwise, most reasonable people feel if Villar is beaten, it will be in a run-off.
So if you agree, that the goal is to force a run-off, then Zuma Dogg only HELPS that cause. Because the goal is to prevent the mayor from getting more than the 50% required.
SO ANY AND EVERY VOTE AGAINST VILLAR HELPS HIM LOSE, LOSER!
But besides that...why don't you tell those other two guys to drop out then, because they are taking votes away from Zuma Dogg. (And you are slightly kooky if you think anyone other challenger is going to get more votes than "Zuma Dogg."
Sorry, they just aren't.
There's a newsclip from KTKA on the fishwrap of record's local news blog with a woman from the NoHo Arts district complaining "what are we, like West Hollywood or L A now?" having to pay 25c for 15 minutes.
Yeah honey that's exactly what you are, like L A, pay your fair share, why should the rest of us have subsidized you for so many years? Geez. If we could keep rates that low we'd be happy campers, but we're paying a quarter for 5 minutes in many areas and our rents are higher. So share the pain, stop thinking you are "entitled" to special treatment just because you're in the Valley. You guys already have better streets and schools while paying less, no boo-hoos from me.
The stupidity of Villar and his Gang of 15 is breathtaking! Not only are we NOT going to feed the pig (meters), they will lose whatever revenue they got from the old meters with the nickels, dimes and quarters! But it will be the little street front businesses that suffer resulting in loss of MORE revenue. I feel sorry for the locals!
Also, we have the internet. I did ALL of my shopping on Amazon this year...no sales tax and no shipping charges. What a way to go!
I'm sure they're working on a way to tax the internet and charge for parking in malls, but they better realize that we will all move if and when it happens!
It's a lose-lose for the city of LA...anyway you slice it!
We're mad - and we're not going to take it anymore! Hasta la vista, baby!
West L.A. Neighborhood Council opposes parking meter rates >$1/hour.
Vote was unanimous.
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