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Boston parking rules don't apply when you're the son of the city supervisor of parking enforcement
By adamg on Mon, 02/16/2009 - 10:07am
The Globe has five of their Northeastern co-op students watch the handicap-parking spaces in front of BPD headquarters for a couple of months. Their conclusions are, of course, both predictable (the Globe seems to do this sort of story every few years) and infuriating.
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Comments
Comments—am I the only one?
When I first clicked on the story, there were some 80 comments, and after going to page two, they all vanished. I tried on a different computer, and they're all still gone.
What happened?
I still see comments
95 of them now.
I had trouble too. I saw
I had trouble too. I saw comments, and then they vanished.
Are disappearing comments
...a frequent occurrence on boston.com? I've noticed it before with politically touchy (i.e., local goings on involving connected people) topics.
That and stories that seem buried on the website by the afternoon.
Am I imagining this???
Lol
When a Globe reporter called Landry's office on Feb. 10 to ask about the Toyota, Landry was stunned. "I will investigate," she said. "Trust me when I tell you that."
AKA: Let me call my kid quickly
Five minutes later...
The Northeastern student-reporter was clearly standing outside at the handiicapped parking spaces, because he/she reported that, five minutes after the phone call, Landry's son rushed out (in shirtsleeves -- the high temperature was 37 deg F that day) to move the car.
Funny, he must've found parking somewhere else that day. I wonder why he doesn't park in that other spot rather than the handicapped space? Maybe he moved it in front of a fire hydrant instead...
Too bad the reporters didn't submit a public records request for the son's timecard for that day. I wonder if he ever clocked out for his break while moving his car around the neighborhood looking for a space?
more gotcha
the Globe seems to do this sort of story every few years
If they did this sort of story every day instead of printing Harvard press releases and lame lifestyle stuff, their circulation might be higher.
There's certainly enough of this sort of stuff to write about.
more gotcha
Gotcha journalism is pretty much the high point of the Glob. What else is it good for? The comics?
What they need to do is keep
What they need to do is keep going back every week, keep calling and asking what's being done, and call Mumbles every week for a comment. After a while, he's get sick of hearing about it. As it is, this is drive-by "investigative journalism." They "expose a scandal" and then move on. They police know they'll be moving on, so they won't change practices. The Globe gets what they want, and the police get what they want.
By the way: if I was those college interns and I owned a car, I'd be very careful around town.
It is pretty silly that
It is pretty silly that there isn't a lot more parking near the police headquarters, irrespective of the obvious violation of the law by these folks.
The City of Boston
The City of Boston deliberately cut down on parking spaces in the city to force people out of cars and on to public transportation. Why should city workers be any different? Most of the employees at that building are civilians, not cops.
AND...
Nearly everyone in that building is mandated to live within the city, no less. Of course, they've just won an agreement not to have that law enforced on them any time soon....but it's there nonetheless.
There aren't?
I live 0.3 miles from police headquarters. My street and many many many other residential streets nearby have no parking restrictions except for on street cleaning days. No resident permits required, no meters, etc. So if you're able to walk 1500 feet (or a lot less, if you park on one of the streets that's closer than mine is), then you should be fine. If you actually are not able to walk 1500 feet, then you're eligible for a placard permitting you to park in the accessible spaces. Seems like they worked it out just fine.
Don't these same must-take-car-everywhere people also go to malls and shopping centers with no problems? Like, where you walk more than 1500 feet from most parking spots? Or more than 1500 feet between stores? I don't see them complaining about how there IS ABSOLUTELY NOWHERE TO PARK when a lot is involved, no matter what the size.
Oh, btw, there also isn't much parking near city hall or any of the downtown courthouses. People seem to manage to work and transact business there. Do they beam themselves?
Fair enough. You win.
Fair enough. You win.
Adam It was five interns,
Adam
It was five interns, not two.
Fixed, thanks
I was just going by the byline; I should've looked at the very bottom of the story.
Boston Public Library parking.
Campaign operatives park in front of the Boylston Street entrance at our Boston Public Library when people are voting. Voters using wheelchairs should have access there.