That’s not what I had in mind to write for this Sunday, but sometimes things don’t go as planned…
Yesterday morning, I went to buy some presents from Blue Mountain Coffees, one of my favorite stores on Elmwood Ave. I usually walk there, but I had a few other errands, so I took my car and parked in the same place I’ve been parking for over fifteen years: the lot at 543 Elmwood Ave. Remember, the American Repertory Theater of WNY is on one side of the lot, and a building where it used to be a KeyBank branch, on the other.
A few other cars were parked there but still checked for any signs, because you never know. I didn’t see any, so I left to do my shopping, feeling confident that I could park there safely as usual. You can imagine how shocked I was when I returned, to discover locks on my tires and a notice with a towing company’s phone number attached.
$81.56 “purchase” from Lightning Towing Inc. (yes, that’s how they call it)
Turned out the parking lot is private property, not city-owned. You see, I don’t get upset paying tickets when I’m in the wrong – I actually laugh it off, calling it my charity to the city. But this time, I wasn’t in the wrong, and it wasn’t the city’s parking lot either.
I wasn’t the only one caught off guard. As I was about to leave another lady arrived to find her car immobilized. She told me she has been parking there for three years without any issues as well. Clearly, the property owner had a change of heart, but why they didn’t put up clear signs or close the lot with a chain?
Because something else is happening here, and you don’t need eagle vision to see it and do the math. So yes, my righteousness kicked in so strongly that I felt compelled to write and warn you about it.