Update to the Update

Posted on Aug 20, 2010 in PARK(ing) Day 2010 | 1 comment

An update to the 2 hour PARK(ing) Day decision. (ORIGINAL POST HERE)

BACKGROUND

Initially, I was planning on just completing a 2 hour project to respect and adhere to the 2 hour city parking by-law. Once more participants got involved the overwhelming consensus was to have a day long event so that is what we were planning for.

RECENT EVENTS

Up until the past month the communication with the City of London had been next to none, however, in the past month I have been talking with a staff member who has been more than supportive, accommodating and helpful with all PARK(ing) Day plans. Without a doubt this has been one of the most positive experiences I have had working with the City of London on a project that might be a little “out of the box” for a typically conservative city.

Upon speaking to this staff member at the beginning of the week it was highly recommended that we stick to the 2 hour parking limit as automobiles must stick to this limit as well. Given that there is a by-law (as stated above) and PARK(ing) Day is a worldwide act of generosity and playful activism intended to serve the broader public good it was decided that obeying the law and having fun can happen at the same time.

Although many participants, sponsors and organizers had no issue with this change and understood the reasoning, many people still wanted to have a day long event. Because of this I contacted Downtown London to see if they could help in any way.

Initially (a few months ago) I was told by Downtown London that they would handle this aspect of PARK(ing) Day as well as contribute in a couple of different way, however, sadly this did not happen. Perhaps it was just a matter of miscommunication or a misunderstanding but the leg work had not been completed to avoid this ‘issue’. Once I informed Downtown London of this earlier in the week they said they would contact the City of London to see what they could do and I was to call them the next day with a ‘decision’. I called the next day but there was no news.

3PM TODAY

Up until 3pm today I had not heard anything back from the City of London or Downtown London in regards to this ‘issue’. Because of this and the fact that PARK(ing) Day is less than a month away, selected submissions still need to be contacted and I have had a number of participants requesting to know what time frame specifically we were planning for, a decision needed to be made.

Although personally I have no issue or problem with adapting and changing plans at the last minute, I more than respect that many businesses need to be able to plan properly and that many people are not good with change, last minute decisions and like to have information as soon as possible. In addition to this, there are a number of other events happening in London the same day/weekend and this must be taken into consideration.

A decision needed to be made based on feedback from earlier in the week (from the City, organizers, participants and sponsors) and this was made entirely by myself. Out of this decision came this post.

4PM TODAY

As luck would have it I received a phone call from the City of London an hour after I posted the 2 hour decision.

I was informed that a report was going to the Environment & Transportation Committee (ETC) on Monday to suggest that all selected PARK(ing) Day sites be ‘bagged’ and reserved for PARK(ing) Day.¹

I was informed that PARK(ing) Day (for the most part) was being supported by many City of London staff members and council members² and the City of London wanted to make sure that it was a success.

I informed the staff member who I spoke with that the decision had already been made to limit PARK(ing) Day to a 2 hour period out of respect for the existing laws and the fact that we do not need to break any laws or have an excessive amount of accommodations made to make PARK(ing) Day a success.

Given that at 3PM I had already posted about the 2 hour decision and started to email a number of people I felt that it was not appropriate to start ‘back tracking’ without knowing if the ‘bagging’ option would be approved by the ETC and/or council.

WHY THE DECISION WAS MADE

The decision to limit PARK(ing) Day London was my decision based on the following.

1. There is no need to break any laws in order to make PARK(ing) Day a success and to make it have an impact. Other cities across the world are doing it, some for only 1/2 hour periods, so although an entire day would be nice it is not necessary.
2. A definite decision needed to me made. As stated, we are less than a month a way and people need to plan. In this case, when there is more than myself involved, I would rather error on the side of caution. I personally am ok with change, ‘living by the seat of my pants’ and throwing caution to the wind, but I respect that many people aren’t.
3. MOST IMPORTANTLY: After speaking with more people than I can count on my hands and feet, it was an overall consensus that ‘bagging’ city meters would be the very last resort. Given the purpose of PARK(ing) Day and the need to take a (creative) stand, bagging the meters (although in the end we would be paying for them) would not help the perception of PARK(ing) Day in the public eye. If there were no other option other than ‘bagging’ the meters I am sure that people would agree to continue, but given that we can do this without ‘bagging’ the meters even if only for a 2 hour period, I think says more about the project.

The decision to make PARK(ing) Day a 2hr event was made by myself based on the recommendation, information and input I had from all participants, sponsors, organizers, supporters and the City of London.

I personally apologize if there has been a lack of communication or a mis-understanding. If any comments or judgements need to be made regarding PARK(ing) Day and the decision to limit it to a 2 hour period please do not criticize the City of London, it’s staff, the mayor or councillors as they have all been more than supportive.

Any blame or responsibility lies with me.

Cheers,

Kevin Van Lierop

PS A strictly personal note: Without a doubt I agree that a day long event would have been fantastic, it would have gotten a ton of people involved, would have had a day long impact and would have been a first for London and Canada.  From what I can find cities across Canada that have participated in the past have only done a single space and only for a 2 hour period (even Toronto) so without a doubt London, Ontario is making the largest impact for a Canadian city participating for the first time in PARK(ing) Day.

Given that this is our first time, we are attempting 10 spaces, are involving more than just 2 or 3 people and are in London, Ontario (take that for what you think it means) I think that doing PARK(ing) Day for 2 hours without meter bags says a lot more than doing it for an entire day with bags.

The fact that the City of London (for the most part and from what I have heard) is embracing PARK(ing) Day I think it makes sense to meet them half way by following the laws and rules that are in place.  I’m not saying that I believe in all of the bylaws and rules that are in place, but if a point can be made while respecting them I think thats more of a win.

1. The process for bagging meters involves paying an initial fee as well as paying for the time each meter is used [↩]
2. Judy Bryant and Paul Hubert both expressed their support for the event well before planning even started. [↩]