Sometimes I tend to be overly critical, so let us give kudos where kudos are due.
Today, I saw that MB government can be very efficient indeed! I was parked at the public parking lot at 72nd and Collins, with a validated sticker until 3:55 PM. I kinda forgot about time, and when I returned to my car, there was one of those US$18.00 parking tickets. Well deserved, after all, I was paid in until 3:55 PM. My surprise was finding that the ticket had been written at 4:05, only ten minutes after my validated time!!!
I was dumbfounded by such efficiency. It took the zealous parking guy (or gal) only ten times to find my violation!!!
On the other side of the story, the same parking lot is full of ticket dispensing machines that work whenever they want, sometimes, never. Apparently, the city is very careful about sending employees to find cars that bypassed the allowed time by a mere ten minutes (having paid for six hours, by the way), yet, nobody obviously checks those dispensing machines, which would not be a difficult thing to do. Placing an OUT OF ORDER sign would be a nice thing, for, at times, I have had to try four different machines to get a ticket, walking around the lot like a zombie.
The non-working machines also sprung up a new industry. Every once in a while one can find a few folks of questionable pedigree hanging around in the parking lot, offering "help" with the machines. After "help" is provided (often telling tourists the machines are not working, duh!), they ask for money. This is obviously adding insult to injury. Plus people that openly solicit right on the parking lot, with open liquor containers, without any police intervention whatsoever.
How about the corner of 71st and Harding? I have seen MB crews working on the storm drainage system there, on and off, and they never get it right! In fact, once somebody hit a sewer line that literally spread feces all over the place. A recent heavy rain caused the whole area to be seriously flooded.
I know. Giving out parking tickets means revenue for the city. Checking out on broker dispensing machines, loitering on parking lots and storm drainage does not. I get it.
Let me rephrase. No congratulations, MB. Shame on you.
