How to combat parking lot fraud

Tracy Yost, verified:

Thanks Mike for re-posting this - we are going to do everything we possibly can to raise awareness of this issue and put a stop to it. WE CANNOT WAIT UNTIL JULY!

Travis Bush, verified:

Keep up the good fight Tracy and Rick!

Tracy Yost, verified:

Thanks Travis. We're just honest brokers trying to run a small business. We do not have the money to pull strings a city hall. All we can do is raise awareness and hope that the right people take notice.

Travis Bush, verified:

It is the unscrupulous parking lot owners who make it hard for everyone to enjoy being downtown and for good folks like you to make a living. Simply unacceptable for our city.

Jason Rice, verified:

My question:

How the hell can these people charge money without being required to provide receipts?

That stipulation will of course cost the parking lots serious coin, but the problem dissolves with one simple receipt.

Welcome to commerce.

Tracy Yost, verified:

The ordinance just passed by the city council stipulates that if they do not provide a receipt, they cannot boot or tow. However, for reasons I am not privy to, the ordinance does not go into effect for downtown until next summer. (in effect in deep ellum effective 1/1/2010). We cannot wait until summer!

Jason Rice, verified:

Ok, that falls into the "moronic" category.
Separate timetables for things two blocks apart???

Tracy Yost, verified:

clearly someone on the downtown side has 1) an interest in a parking lot and 2) the ear of a councilperson

Rick Yost, verified:

Maybe it's like Deep Ellum in that someone with enough money and political clout is wanting to do something dramatic with this eastern-downtown-neighborhood too. Maybe they're just sitting back waiting for all the small businesses to give up and go away. The real estate has to be getting cheaper down here too.

Maybe I just expect too much. When I hear folks say downtown is coming back- they've been shuffling up and down a three and four block area of Elm and Main where all the big high-rise buildings are that can afford to attract restaurants and clubs to occupy their bottom floors. Little two-story places like ours are not even considered in downtown proper- not by the city council anyway.

Jason Rice, verified:

Gee. How can I help wonder why I live out of Dallas? I used to think it was the schools and the rampant corruption. Then I thought it was the police... and the rampant corruption. Now I'm wondering if we should just rename the place "Mexico City North" and move on.

Rick Yost, verified:

"Emerald City" I don't know who's behind the curtain.

Travis Bush, verified:

"Now I'm wondering if we should just rename the place "Mexico City North" and move on."

As soon as you rename Plano to "Cesar Chavezville"

Tracy Yost, verified:

lol travis

Tracy Yost, verified:

gosspl, if I understand the ordinance correctly, if a receipt is not provided, that just means they are not allowed to boot or tow...

Jason Rice, verified:

::rename Plano to "Cesar Chavezville"

I'm working on it. Trust me, I found someone up here that has heard of him... ok, they thought it was someone on the Shopping Channel, but close. Trust me, nothing is more important than propping up um exposing ... er... celebrating this great Arizonan..darn... Symbol of immigration..hmm.. LULAC Brand Idol ... uh... organizer to bolster awareness equality tourism Government funding in Collin County.

So I ask you, would Cesar use The Boot?

Tracy Yost, verified:

gosspl - can't give you a car but will be glad to video :-)

Jesus Valadez, verified:

Y'all had me all worried when I went down to Twisted Root burger. I was hoping that I wouldn't get hit with the boot.

Tracy Yost, verified:

Jesus - deep ellum visitors are now (at least in theory) protected by the new ordinance. The ordinance does not go into effect until next summer for the downtown area.

Tracy Yost, verified:

Hawkeye Parking Enforcement's Better Business Bureau listing -

Based on BBB files, this business has a BBB Rating of F on a scale from A+ to F. Reasons for this rating include:

* 13 complaints filed against business
* Failure to respond to 8 complaints filed against business.

Tracy Yost, verified:

Parking Company of America's listing at Merchant Circle

Tracy Yost, verified:

File a complaint with the state attorney general and the texas department of licensing and regulation

Tracy Yost, verified:

This was posted on another forum, by one of my customers who was illegally booted last weds Dec 30th. I just now found it.... apparently one of the people actually DID video themselves putting money in the box, to no avail!!

" Never Parking In a Pay Lot Again says:

Tonight I went to see a friend's band play their very first set at Pearl at Commerce. I made sure to pay immediately after getting out of my car after having heard many horror stories about parking in downtown and deep ellum.

Well, needless to say, I got booted. In fact, at least 6 other people I know of did, too, in the same lot! One guy even had video of himself walking from his car and putting the money into the box.

So I called the cops. And unfortunately they are powerless to do anything to these people. It's my word versus theirs, so it's a civil matter. Nothing they could do.

But, as I stood there waiting, I made sure to tell the 10 cars I saw pulling in the lot to park on the street and feed the city meters. Take money from my pockets, I will gladly return the favor.

What's worse is that the sticker on my car windshield said 8:54 pm. The video shown to us by the booters when they looked in the box was 8:55 PM! Uuhhhh, helloooo?!?!? How can you boot my car before even looking in the (Q&#$)(&Q# BOX??!?!? So gee, lemme think, why not move the money before opening up the box on all the nice cars in the lot. (which is surely what it looked like!)

In the end, all of us had to pay up so we could go home. And none of us will ever be paying to park in those lots again. Doubtful if any of us will be returning to the area either.

I really feel bad for any business owners in deep ellum and downtown. They have no parking of their own and they are at the mercy of pay meters and these lot owners. The owners of Pearl at Commerce were great folks, very warm and friendly. This issue has hurt them badly and will continue to do so.

I just wish I could have seen my friend's first ever set instead of having to wait for the cops and the booters. All I got was the last song... Posted On: Thursday, Dec. 31 2009 @ 1:24AM "

Tracy Yost, verified:

"the lot owners do not belong to the Deep Ellum merchants association nor are they pretending to be engaged in any success there."

that's because they are basically parasites. in every sense of the word.

Tracy Yost, verified:

ps, "lot owners" in my last comment refers to the parking operators, not the property owners.....

Tracy Yost, verified:

Thanks DJ, I actually found that statute last night, and that is EXACTLY what we are going to do the VERY NEXT TIME this happens.

Phillip Wilkinson, verified:

Can we legally use a cordless sawsall to free our friends? Should the local owners have this tool to loan out to the their patrons .With the right blade this tool will cut it off like butter.

Tracy Yost, verified:

Phillip - I just found some testimony on that very issue - Guess I need to run out and get one of these!!

"Our vehicle was booted, in July, @ Deep Ellum. This AFTER we paid the correct slot number for the correct parking number...right in front of one of Hawkeye's parking monitoring goons! Needless to say, there was massive rage directed towards these people in the attempt to correct this wrong. It got to the point, and I made this VERY clear to them AND the DPD, that I was going to my shop(body shop owner)to gather my torch cutting system and return to "CUT their boot off my car". I asked the DPD if it was illegal to do such a thing, and, they said, it would be a "civil matter". That was all I needed to hear. Within 10 minutes of that last phone call to the DPD, my boots were removed @ no cost! Make no mistake...I WOULD have cut that boot off my vehicle and dealt w/those sorry thugs in a civil court...something they, apparently, were not willing to do!"

Phillip Wilkinson, verified:

Tracy ,Thanks I think I have a new hobby now.I love helping folks out.Cheers !

Tracy Yost, verified:

sorry DC, I am using a computer today that is protected from dangerous internetz, and that includes videos.

Phillip Wilkinson, verified:

That's for only when he flies.LOL!

Phillip Wilkinson, verified:

There is one other way to get the boot off is to have a car battery operated air pump you can loan out.1 let the air out of the tire and slide the boot off and reair the tire.This does depend on the the style off boot.

Pavel Lishin, verified:

An air compressor or a spare tire.

Tracy Yost, verified:

you'd need 2 spare tires, because they boot front and rear.
I have read that you can let the air out, but, I don't know if that will work on these boots or not.

Tracy Yost, verified:

Got 4 boots tonight, 3 said they paid. much yelling. cops came, made reports. finally, the owner of the boot thugs came out and did refund money to one elderly man who paid in the wrong box. flatly told the rest they were lying. I have most of it on video, will take some time to get it all uploaded. Help us fight the boot thugs!!

Tracy Yost, verified:

One thing the cops told me tonight that I did not realize - part of the ordinance passed the other day that DOES apply to downtown right now - if the owner of the vehicle appears on the scene before the boots are completely on the vehicle, they must remove the boot and allow you to pay. If they do not, cops said call 911 and THEY will come remove the boot. This significant because I know several of our customers that have come to the club to get change to pay for parking, only to return to the parking lot to find the boot thugs at work on their vehicle.

Tracy Yost, verified:

The local beat cops, btw, are doing a fantastic job! They do what they can!

Tracy Yost, verified:

Another helpful thing the police told me tonight - the boot thugs use "spotters" - usually homeless guys - to whom they will give a cell phone, and the spotter is supposed to call the boot thugs if they see someone get out of their car and not pay. This is how they are able to get there quickly and get a boot on your car while you go get change. Be on the lookout for these spotters! Help us fight the boot thugs!

Tracy Yost, verified:

Hi TG - most people do not consider $5 "change" - it costs $5 to park in the lots at night and on the weekends. Granted, once you've been here a few times, you should know that, right? But if all you got is some $20s, and you know the nice people at the bar will give you change, that (apparently) seems like an ok plan. The lot operators do not provide any method for making change.

As said below, the new law apparently gives a little cushion in that if you reappear in the lot after having gone to get change, they must allow you to pay if they have not yet completely booted the car. This is why it's important to be on the lookout for the spotters, so you'll know if you have time to get change or not :-)

Tracy Yost, verified:

PS we have actually had customers park in the front of the lot nearest our door, walk to the door to get change from Rick right at the door, (not even coming into the club) and walk back (total time gone from the car, probably less than 1 minute), and the boot thugs are at work on their car. Have seen this several times!!! I'm sorry, that's just wrong.

Tracy Yost, verified:

re: Local Media - I know that local media is aware of this problem, they all write about it and some of them have documented my customers' problems specifically.

If anyone here knows anyone from local broadcast media who would like to cover this story, please tell them that tonight would be a good night for them to hang out at Pearl! We were very busy dealing with booting last night and tonight will no doubt be the same!!

Tracy Yost, verified:

Just got 3 boots - one paid the wrong amount ("$1.25 All Day in huge letters, $5 nights and weekends in tiny little letters). The other two put their money in the wrong box. There are two lots side by side (no line or anything so that you can tell it's two different lots), and two boxes, one of them kind of hidden be...hind a tree. Help us fight the boot thugs!!!

Tracy Yost, verified:

Based on the information here, I believe that Parking Company of America operates in violation of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Consumer Protection Act. That page also tells how to proceed with legal action.

Tracy Yost, verified:

We are hosting the Assassination City Roller Derby "Black & Blue" awards tonight, and just got 8-10 boots - all saying they paid. Many cops. Cops say "these guys are crooks". This soooo sucks. Please people, write your Dallas city council representative and tell them that downtown needs some relief from the boot crooks!!

BTW - just heard from the folks at Ass City that "they messed with the wrong folks" and "it's on!". Hell yes!

Travis Bush, verified:

So, Tracy..did the cops get the boots removed?

Tracy Yost, verified:

no, they cannot. It is a civil matter. We call them so they will file an incident report, and also so they will be there in case things escalate. Trust me, when people pay to park, and then get booted, they are ANGRY!

Jason Rice, verified:

Heck with that! Call SOMEONE ELSE'S Dallas City Councilman.

Frankly - Why set foot in downtown again till I can be assured it will be an honest parking lot? The landlords and the investors have GOT to see the writing on that wall.

My type is sure not going down there any time soon with this crap going on.

Tracy Yost, verified:

Boot thugs pull up in front of our venue (where front door is open due to nice weather), roll down their dark tinted windows and sneer at the people inside. Nice. I guess they were upset because all my customers were parked at street meters.

Tracy Yost, verified:

At tonight's town hall, councilwoman Hunt assured that she is putting together a council session for the purpose of voting for the boot ordinance to go into effect immediately!! Please write councilwoman Hunt and other city council members and urge them to vote the ordinance effective immediately! Contact info here

Travis Bush, verified:

Sent: Sunday, January 17, 2010 9:15 AM To: Gallegos, Rosa Subject: E-Mail from Web Page for Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Pauline Medrano

Travis Bush

COMMENTS: Greetings Deputy Mayor! I am writing in regards the ongoing parking problem is occurring downtown. I understand the new ordinance has gone into effect for Deep Ellum which mandates that parking lot companies must give a receipt before towing or booting a car. Unfortunately the unscrupulous towing companies responsible for this problem have simply moved to more fertile grounds. It is unfortunate that the ordinance didn't cover downtown at the same time.

I also write because of a selfish interest. Thirteen local artists plan to have an art show on February 20th, at Pearl AT Commerce Bar. Surrounding Pearl At Commerce are several parking lots owned by Parking Company of America. Their agents are illegally booting cars at those locations on a regular basis, much to the detriment of the owners of Pearl, its patrons, and the City of Dallas.

Admittedly my concern is for the success of the upcoming art show, and you can imagine how the thought of having one's vehicle illegally booted, can and will keep people away from that location. You can also guess how it is harming any business trying to thrive there.

I don't know if anything can be done in one month, but please consider this a plea to remedy this situation.

Sincerely,

Travis Bush

Pavel Lishin, verified:

Maybe a few people just hanging aroudn with some blow torches and angle grinders could help dissuade the booters. :)

Tracy Yost, verified:

Travis - thank you so much! I can only hope that others are also expressing their concerns to the council!

Tracy Yost, verified:

Pavel - I totally agree but if caught, there could be "criminal mischief" or "destruction of property" charges.

Travis Bush, verified:

Tracy, I also sent that to Angela Hunt and she emailed back. She mentioned the fact she was going to try and change the ordinance at next week's meeting. Good to see the powers that be are listening and responding to us!

Tracy Yost, verified:

yes, it is! and thank you again!

Jason Rice, verified:

::blow torches and angle grinders

::"destruction of property"

OH! I see where the disconnect is. You thought Pavel would just attack the hardware. No. I think a guy just holding an angle grinder nearby is pretty straightforward "Assault" in the making.

Michael Davis, verified:

FYI for anyone seeing this WED 2/10 950am . they are discussing the issue right now. I told Mayor Pro Tem about the continued issues even in Deep Ellum re: enforcement of the new ordinance. It's a pretty good discussion.

Travis Bush, verified:

Thanks for your support, Michael!

Tracy Yost, verified:

Thanks Michael, and Travis, and anyone else who wrote the council and the mayor. I had a pretty good feeling about this after talking to Angela Hunt last week. She deserves a lot of credit for garnering the votes needed to get it passed. We'll be celebrating at Pearl tonight, if you want to join us please do park on the street meters because the new rules don't go into effect until tomorrow !! hahaha

Travis Bush, verified:

eh..did anyone else hear Jeff Klundt from Hawkeye on KERA today? He was complaining about how the change to the booting ordinance will put his eight employees out of a job...Irony of ironies that his company's practices could have lead to many businesses folding. Maybe they can spend their new found time looking for honest employment and learn how to spell the word "ethics"...

Jason Rice, verified:

Boo-freakin'-hoo.

So why don't I think it will be hard to find another "profession" in which you wait till someone looks away and you commandeer their possessions? Or falsify data? Or flat out lie?

C'mon, it's the south, Demo's are in control of Congress and it's a Census year. Brainstorm a little genius.

Michael Davis, verified:

FYI - Dwaine is working on getting the downtown and Deep Ellum meters "hooded" at night, which makes the parking free but doesn't spend the $$$ to physically take out the meters. Money for the meter removal is not is the budget right now. Stay tuned.

Travis Bush, verified:

bet we could find some people who would gladly do that for free..:D

Tracy Yost, verified:

Jeff's karma ran over his dogma today. I do not feel the least bit sorry for them. They should have thought of that while they were intimidating people and ripping people off. Michael - that's awesome - how do we find out more about it?

Tracy Yost, verified:

and how does a THUG like that get a spot on KERA anyhow?

Jason Rice, verified:

::bet we could find some people who would gladly do that for free

Um... not volunteering for a night in the box.

Travis Bush, verified:

Tracy..it was just a sound bite of him crying at City Council..pretty much everyone knows how unscrupulous this business is.. the BBB gives them an F..

http://www.bbb.org/dallas/business-re...

He can QQ all he wants and hopefully someone calls him out on his next unethical business venture..Hawkeye is no better than Lone Star Towing and one bets they have done business with each other before.

Michael Davis, verified:

Tracy - I'll keep everyone posted.

The tow companies trying to do anything out of the goodness of their hearts is a frigging joke. I was with Dwaine the night he described the scene where our friend got towed. Their lucky they still have a license. yes, it was a Hawkeye lot. The thing I describe in my new blog post...a Hawkeye lot..so they can get some Kleenex and adhere to the new rules.

And let's not forget about the well-dressed lady in the SUV who waits until you park, hops out and boots you. We see it all.

Travis Bush, verified:

LOLZ! Thanks for taking the time to view my recent work!

Tracy Yost, verified:

kpn you need to check your facts. First, not everyone who was fraudulently booted filed a complaint with the city, because it has not been well publicized how to do so. Second, Gary Titlow, who handles these complaints, testified at the council meeting yesterday that 15% of the complaints were legitimate or at least "unclear".

Pavel Lishin, verified:

Travis sounds like he's got it all figured out. Travis, focus on your paintings. One day they may be art. Practice. Practice. Practice.

Awesome, ad hominem attacks always prove that you are in the right.

"Only 58 complaints" is one every other day. And offering not to boot during the game as a courtesy - what does that have to do with the previous shady tactics?

Michael Davis, verified:

new post on this

http://www.pegasusnews.com/news/2010/...