Monday, December 13, 2010

Havre Two-Hour Parking

Mayor Tim finally made an “executive” decision today and decided it was high time the City enforced the two-hour parking ordinance downtown. Mayor Tim sent uniformed officers to all the businesses downtown with a letter from the Chief of Police demanding that downtown business owners and employees no longer break the two-hour parking law. City ordinance provides that violators can be subjected to up to a $300 dollar fine.

Some downtown business owners had previously taken it upon themselves to place “customer only” parking signs in front of their businesses only to be obnoxiously told by a public works uppity-up that they had to remove them as all streets are public and they were violating city ordinance. Apparently this is a stepped up attempt by City Hall to drive what is left of down-town business people out to the mall or elsewhere. Interestingly, this will be one of the few ordinances that are actually enforced in our city limits if they indeed do follow through with this action. A scan of the letter is attached below.

It appears those down town business owners shouldn’t have gone to City Hall to complain about that proposed business license. Look out boys ------------- I hear they are issuing the officers new Jack Boots and they will be keeping an eye on you.

Anyone else notice that City Hall excluded themselves from this directive? I guess if you want free all-day unlimited parking you will have to walk to work from over at City Hall. I also noticed that they “suggest” in their letter that “All businesses should report such violations to the Police Department” - Yep.......turn in your buddy. Yet another tactic copied directly from the Jack Booted Thugs Training Manual. I predict that, like all our local ordinances, enforcement will be selective or non-existent.

Merry Christmas everyone!

23 comments:

  1. This is a joke.

    The only way to know if a vehicle is parked for longer than the allowed 2-hours is to mark the cars. Do you really think the police have time to do this? If they do we have too many employed on the police force

    ReplyDelete
  2. That is why everyone calls him Mayor Dim

    ReplyDelete
  3. Currently no ordinances in the City of Havre are enforced with any regularity. This is just another attempt to obtain compliance by intimidation. I doubt we will see any follow up just as the city does (or doesn’t do) with everything.

    Name for me one ordinance that is enforced with regularity and for everyone

    ReplyDelete
  4. Ummm other than employees/business owners and movie goers, who can actually stand to be downtown for over two consecutive hours? Its not like there are some kick ass businesses that take two hours to look through... I could easily hit all those downtown businesses in an hour and half and get back in my car not having spent a dime...

    ReplyDelete
  5. I take back part of my previous statement... Barkus Home Center is a kick ass business.

    ReplyDelete
  6. No, we don't miss Mayor Boob. But I do find it ironic that the letter comes from Chief Nystrom himself, who lives on 16th Street and a couple months ago had more campers, boats and trailers parked within a two block radius of HIS house. Yeah. I'm pretty worried about "enforcement".

    ReplyDelete
  7. First Mayor Boob and now Mayor Dim

    I like the name freddy

    ReplyDelete
  8. Does the business community think this will help?

    Perhaps an ATTEMPT at decent customer service, and an ATTEMPT at competative pricing may do more to encourage their businesses.

    Once again- the people of Havre do not OWE these entities ANY business.

    Certainly when local businesses take advantage of the simple fact they are local- and charge over $5 for a loaf of bread (Gary you listening?)the market will correct itself.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Firstly, Nystrom did not park any of his trailers illegally. I would know, I live by him.
    Secondly, who the hell else is going to write the letter?? A dispatcher? A council member?
    Step off the PD... people, they are the ones that stay up all night stretched thin trying their best to patrol every neighborhood so your whiney butts can be safe.
    Unless you put a gun on your hip, a vest on your back, and kiss your babies goodbye hoping its not the last kiss 5 days of the week I respectfully say STFU.

    ReplyDelete
  10. l.a.b...
    our fair city has three times the force as when i came 22 years ago...
    no improvement in safety or theft over that period. at one point a ranking member of the force ratted me off to a drug dealer i had turned in. made for some sketchy nights.
    in my neighborhood there is no such thing as "patrol"...
    day or night.
    by the way..."all night" is a routine shift that some people prefer...
    i must have missed the last time a cop was killed in the line of duty in havre.
    but the gestapo, er, home-dumb- security will thank you for your support.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Josh Rutherford was close enough to Havre when he got killed. WTF does it matter if it happened in Havre or not. The fact is, it can.

    Secondly the amount of thefts etc isn't related to the PD its related the the criminals committing them.

    Soooooo you watch your neighborhood 24/7 to make sure the two officers on shift have driven through your area?? Really? And if that's so you should start a neighborhood watch program. You know, be a part of the solution.

    Firstly, not many officers prefer night shift. Secondly, go on a ride-along and witness patrol first hand... unless you're a felon.

    I'm not sure if you have ever interviewed a child who has been abused/molested or a rape victim... have you? No? Well each of those officers have. Have you been in a vehicle pursuit at speeds in excess of 100 mph? Or have you bagged the hands and head of a murder victim to preserve evidence for the crime lab? Have you wrestled someone with a gun?

    No? Then once again. STFU.

    But what, may I ask, do YOU do that is honorable or noteworthy?

    ReplyDelete
  12. dear stfu:

    spent five years of my childhood as a ward of the second poorest state in the union. prior to that "safety net" watched my three yo sister butt-f'd on a celebratory night at foster care.
    combat medic in nam...
    bagged a lot of unrecognizable body parts...a few were buddies...
    worked human services for 12 years mostly outside boston in roxbury/roslindale (ranked as one of the worst get-toes on the PLANET at the time). shots through your windows were common. at least it wasn't nam. but, the cops didn't come there.
    your logic caves on the issue of theft...
    indeed, criminals commit them...
    cops are sworn to protect us from them...
    our neighbor hood has had a "watch" for over ten years because we never saw the law. my kids have stopped burglaries on our block.
    i have a small ptsd problem (must be a wimp) and spend lots of nights watching...wish i didn't.
    i may have done nothing honorable or noteworthy.
    oh...
    my son was in iraq, if that counts.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Then what are you bitching about local LE for? Aaaah Holier than thou (them)?

    I bet trying to relate would be a little more productive than your negative thinking towards them.

    And no, my logic doesn't cave on thefts and such. If Officer A is busy at a bar fight while criminal A is at the H.S. vandalising it how in God's name is Officer A going to stop the vandalism? Ohhhh super powers they are awarded at the academy but choose not use. That's right. Forgot about that. There are more criminals than cops. Check out the jail roster sometime.

    Good for you and your neighborhood watch. People ought to do a little more for themselves instead of allowing themselves to be victims. Although I truly do not buy that that police were never in your neighborhood. And if you truly feel that's the case, call the PD with a legitimate concern and request extra patrol.

    You also are not the only one who has had family serve in Iraq. Although props to your son.

    ReplyDelete
  14. i am bitching because i supposedly helped make sure amelikans still can, though the supremes of all courts may remove the right before long.
    thomas paine declared our first responsibility as a patriot was to police the government (all phases) or lose our country.
    a fervent patriot and one of the best known writer's of his day, he was hounded out of the country he helped establish for "the people" by the very rich who felt threatened and had plans outside the interests of "the people".
    over the years things have gone to hell in a handbasket from there.

    one of my medic buds from the nam daze is asst. chief of police in buffalo, ny. he tells great stories from the street to city council. he would appreciate you enthusiasm...with a smile.
    the warden at deer lodge, mike mahoney, is a good friend. hired me for my first mt job.
    i know some good cops. most of them do the best they can.
    pretty much an impossible task.
    perhaps you might spend some time cruising town finding the officers on duty.
    tell me where they are when you find out.
    by the way...
    two of our fearless finest pulled down on a nine yo and a twelve yo...
    in the ally behind my place...
    my kids.
    gave me an attitude.
    when i complained the sargent of watch unsnapped his holster and told me to stfu (maybe you know him).
    gave me an attitude.
    perhaps you have not noticed these things in the papers hither and yon.
    maybe...
    maybe you should take your effusive convictions and join the academy...
    nah...
    maybe not.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Guess what buddy? Been to the academy already...
    'Nough said.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Sounds like LIKE A BIRD IS OPENING A DONUT SHOP.I to think alot of these overzelous younger cops are disrespectful to citizens of Havre and they couldn't find A bee in a hive.I'll take care of my own problems,tried the other route with no satisfaction.As far as 2 hour parking rule,im sure the police will hang out at the movie theater.Mayer Tim should make an executive order and Fine the public works director and his right hand man jenson for not plowing the streets.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Well, we are lacking a donut shop in Havre. Not a bad idea...

    Steroids? That's some funny shit. Females don't need steroids- we have a little thing called tasmanian devil in us.

    Fed Up- in HDN it states that police will respond to complaints, not hang out down town...
    As for overzealous new officers, there will always be some. But it's those overzealous officers who don't shy from dangerous situations. An overzealous officer will be the first to jump into a blazing house to save someone. The complacent ones that you would prob rather deal with would go to a neighbor's house and politely request the use of a hose until firemen arrived.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Maybe if the cops actually would get off Hwy 2 long enough to patrol they would stop some property crimes.
    When they are stopping me because my license plate is dirty, they have too much time on their hands.
    We sat at Gary and Leo's watching five squad cars zooming up and down the Hwy 2 for ten minutes thinking they were looking for some felon, when in fact they were trying to make up for a budget shortfall.
    Let's not even get started on them actually solving a crime.

    ReplyDelete
  19. Cranky farmer I don't understand the budget shortfall comment? They were out on patrol up and down First Street making up for a budget shortfall? What do you mean?

    ReplyDelete
  20. They were writing tickets for every imaginable offense. Tickets= Money. One of the next times I came through town in the late evening I was really tired and didn't want to be harassed so I turned off the HWY and went up past the depot and went around all the traffic lights. I didn't want them to have any excuse to pull me over. I made it almost to Arctic Circle when I was pulled over. The deputy THOUGHT I had a broken tail light. Turns out it was just a REALLY Cranky Farmer.
    If you want people to come to Havre and spend money you can't turn it into a police feeding frenzy on HWY 2.

    ReplyDelete
  21. First of all, I'm not sure how this turned into a law enforcement feeding frenzy...That's neither here nor there

    I work downtown. In some ways, the 2 hour parking limit is good. However, if the city wants to enforce that one, they ALSO need to enforce the ordinance for keeping the sidewalks clean and also put more sand on the streets. Parking a block away from my office now, I have to walk across the streets and across public sidewalks. With all this ice, maybe the city can pay for my broken leg or sprained ankle and for my time off work.

    ReplyDelete
  22. To Cranky farmer and Opinionated,maybe the reason they stay around highway 2 is because the squad cars get stuck on the city streets.

    ReplyDelete