City bags meters WAY ahead of Red, White & Boom « Columbus Underground Messageboard

Columbus Underground Messageboard » General Columbus Discussion

City bags meters WAY ahead of Red, White & Boom

[164 posts] [47 contributors]

Topic Rating:

(Total Ratings: )
Rate this topic:

Started 1 year ago by lizless
Latest reply from RandomVisitor

Tags:

12…9 Next »

lizless
Columbus/Hocking Hills
Login to Send PM

Tonight Dirty Frank's Hot Dog Palace celebrated our one year anniversary. Next door, our friends at the new Little Palace celebrated their one month anniversary.

We had a fun night of specials in store starting at 4pm.

Just before 5pm the City of Columbus bagged every meter on 4th Street for Red, White and Boom tomorrow. We asked the meter baggers to wait but they said they had to bag them tonight.

Both business owners watched in horror as the City took away parking for dinner service and the special anniversary events we had planned. These actions destroy new businesses. We were given no notice that the City would be taking away all on-street parking the night before RW& B. We watched car after car pull up to meters then drive off when they realized EVERY meter was bagged on 4th Street.

Heck, a note from the City to the new businesses would have been nice. Running business downtown ain't easy. City's actions sure don't help.

Anyway, for those of you that did make it down to DFs and LP tonight, thank you!

Posted 1 year ago #
cc

Login to Send PM

Probably extra cautious because of the New York suv bomb in Times Square and the war. They said on the news that they were beefing up security measures but would not elaborate do to security concerns. I agree they could have made some quiet notification to business owners.

Posted 1 year ago #
Lakee911
Clintonville (South)
Login to Send PM

I'm sorry to hear about that. That's super shitty of the City--I've been saying that a lot lately.

Posted 1 year ago #
gramarye
In Exile
Login to Send PM

That really was pretty dense, regardless of the purported justification. This may be a bit callous of me to say, but even if the fear was an SUV bomb, unless they had an actual threat or specific reason to believe that Columbus was a target, I don't think general concern over the mere possibility of a drive-up bomb warranted that kind of response. Yes, the event if it happened would be terrible and dramatic--but the probability is just so ungodly low as to make it not worth the strangulation of downtown businesses trying to make downtown more than a ghost town after 5:00.

Write a letter--or better yet, more than one--to various folks in the city government who would have had input in the decision.

Better yet, make it a group letter signed by as many owners of after-5 downtown businesses as possible ... and make it an open letter. Maybe the Dispatch would even pick it up.

Posted 1 year ago #
Lakee911
Clintonville (South)
Login to Send PM

Let's stop and think, why did they do this?

They were annoucing on the radio that a lot of streets were shutdown already this morning. Maybe to get read they just need the streets closed and if they're closed they can't have cars on it. Right?

Maybe they closed it off last night at 5PM because that is when they had the staff to do it. If they waited until this morning anyone parked there would probably be there for quite some time, no?

Whenever someone does something that *I* think is stupid, I usually wonder, what were *they* thinking?

Posted 1 year ago #
gramarye
In Exile
Login to Send PM

The city could find someone in their umpteen thousand employees with a little creativity.

Heck, I trust our downtown businesses enough that I'd generally be OK with requiring the businesses to bag the meters themselves before they sent their employees home. Since that might be out there for some government control freaks, they could have paid overtime and had people work a late shift. Some things are worth burning extra public funds for.

Posted 1 year ago #
Walker
The KLD / Downtown
Login to Send PM

My guess is that street closures and bagged meters around the main Red White & Boom area need to be locked down the night before due to overnight parking that doesn't clear out until the next morning. Even though the fireworks don't happen until 10pm, RW&B sets up tents and booths and vendors and stuff Ã¢â‚¬Â¢reallyÃ¢â‚¬Â¢ early the day of and they need the room.

That being said, Dirty Frank's is a looooooong way from Ground Zero at RW&B, and I doubt they were even requested bagged by the RW&B production. I'm sure the PVB bagged them to keep those streets wide open to push vehicles out after the show tonight.

Personally, I think the Public Service Department has their priorities out of whack.

Posted 1 year ago #
Walker
The KLD / Downtown
Login to Send PM

PS: If anyone wants to go to DF or LP, where's the best place to park? 5th?

Posted 1 year ago #
Roland
Clintonville
Login to Send PM

They must have been too busy this morning planning on ticketing and towing all the cars on Neil Ave for the scheduled street cleaning.

This operation runs like clockwork.

The city could have closed down the appropriate streets at the appropriate time, and gotten the cars out of there in the same fashion.

More and more, I'm sorely disappointed with city leadership.

Posted 1 year ago #
ThisGuy

Login to Send PM

Getting the city ready for events is apparently more important than keeping it possible for people to get to work that are here everyday. It drives me crazy.

Posted 1 year ago #
cc

Login to Send PM

Why are they having it today instead of the usual 3rd of July?

Posted 1 year ago #
lizless
Columbus/Hocking Hills
Login to Send PM

Last night Little Palace was enjoying their first night of their newly issued permit allowing them to serve alcohol until 2:30am too. Too bady no one could get there to celebrate. The meters were bagged not only on 4th but the surrounding streets as well, there was absolutely no on street parking available anywhere.

Folks enjoying CAPA's movie series last night were also met to bagged meters at every space.

The City took away nearly nine hours of service time from both restaurants. If the City continues to treat downtown like a ghost town after 5pm, Columbus will continue to act like one.

Here's the strange part: the meters on Gay Street (MUCH closer to RWB) remained unbagged last night.

Posted 1 year ago #
futureman
Grandview Heights
Login to Send PM

cc wrote >>
Why are they having it today instead of the usual 3rd of July?

They always seem to have the RW&B before the local community fireworks who are doing their shows Saturday (w/exception of Clintonville). Also, almost all communities are celebrating the 4th on the 3rd. Which I find strange as most people also have off the 5th.

Posted 1 year ago #
melikecheese
Merion Village
Login to Send PM

BUMMER! I hope the celebrations went well anyway.

That's income lost for the city too, not only in meter fees but tax from DF and LP customers, seems like it would make a lot more sense to have staff come in early, like 5AM, and bag the meters then.

Posted 1 year ago #
lifeliberty
Here
Login to Send PM

the city would have to pay overtime for that kinds of stuff, and that would be on top of all the other expenses related to RWB. it's possible the only time they could bag the meters was when they did because they will be busy with other things today for the parade and RWB.

while I do feel for ya having the meters bagged for one or 2 days disrupting business, in a way I feel(I'm sure ya'll will argue) this is the same as some of the business complaining about comfest ruining their business that weekend. Market the hell out of the joint and get people to come in and drink and eat dogs while they wait for traffic to subside.

Posted 1 year ago #
priorityred

Login to Send PM

Lakee911 wrote >>
Let's stop and think, why did they do this?
They were annoucing on the radio that a lot of streets were shutdown already this morning. Maybe to get read they just need the streets closed and if they're closed they can't have cars on it. Right?
Maybe they closed it off last night at 5PM because that is when they had the staff to do it. If they waited until this morning anyone parked there would probably be there for quite some time, no?
Whenever someone does something that *I* think is stupid, I usually wonder, what were *they* thinking?

Thinking? They were probably thinking "we're the city government, you will shut the fuck up and do what we say, or we'll fuck over your business. Now get to paying for our raises!"

The city closed off roads downtown at 9 (well before 9 actually) yesterday morning for no fucking apparent reason. I mean, not streets where the fair food vendors were setting up, but stuff even past that. One day early. What the crap?

Ms Lessner, I'm sorry to hear they screwed you and all the places on the street like that, but I am not surprised. Nobody in this city's government knows their ass from a hole in the ground.

They do however know how to get alcoholic wives nepotistic jobs paying for doing nothing but drinking on the job.

Posted 1 year ago #
priorityred

Login to Send PM

lifeliberty wrote >>
the city would have to pay overtime for that kinds of stuff, and that would be on top of all the other expenses related to RWB. it's possible the only time they could bag the meters was when they did because they will be busy with other things today for the parade and RWB.
while I do feel for ya having the meters bagged for one or 2 days disrupting business, in a way I feel(I'm sure ya'll will argue) this is the same as some of the business complaining about comfest ruining their business that weekend. Market the hell out of the joint and get people to come in and drink and eat dogs while they wait for traffic to subside.

Woulnd't have to pay overtime if they did it this morning, duh. They have the staff.

Marketing the hell outta the joint don't mean shit if nobody can park there.

Nice apologia though, really. Really something.

Posted 1 year ago #
cc

Login to Send PM

I think we need to add a reference to Hitler for Godwin's law to give closure.

Posted 1 year ago #
rus

Login to Send PM

I'm reminded of the previous traffic meter discussion...

Is anyone willing to vote for an alternative to the current administration?

Posted 1 year ago #
Roland
Clintonville
Login to Send PM

rus wrote >>
Is anyone willing to vote for an alternative to the current administration?

Always!

Posted 1 year ago #