Update - Parking Ticket 'cause its a MC - Response from AMA
Just a quick update for those that are interested. See the prior post on this blog regarding my parking ticket for daring to put a motorcycle in a public parking garage in New Haven, CT. Below is a response I got from AMA and my email back to them. I'll update again, if/when the New Haven, CT officials respond to my letters.
Dave.
__________________________________________________________________________________
Terry Cook wrote:
David:
This is similar to situations we are experiencing with many other automated parking garages around the country. For more information on this issue I encourage you to go to http://www.amadirectlink.com/features/Gates.asp and read the article written in American Motorcyclist about this issue.
One of our AMA Legislative Affairs Specialist has been doing some more research on the parking garage engineering. We hope to someday offer another engineering solution to prevent this situation but it has not come yet.
I applaud you for writing the parking authority asking them to rethink their policy. A letter from a customer means much more than one from an un-attached Association.
If you would like I’ll also write a letter to the authority asking them to reconsider policy. I will send a visible courtesy copy of it to you to show them you mean business. But please know that this might not solve the situation. This could be a long and protracted battle. We will continue to work on this with you to resolve it but we also need to depend on you for the local solution.
This is where the AMA Community Council could come into play. AMA Community Councils work closely with the AMA Government Relations Department and serve as the first line of both offense and defense when local issues arise. Local, state and even national issues are much easier to handle if we are organized for action ahead of time and do not wait for the officials to completely shut down the area.
Though there is not an active Community Council in New Haven I would welcome the chance at working with you to build one. Just let me know if this avenue sounds interesting and I’ll gladly send you the information to get started and then continue to work with you to make AMA Community Council – New Haven a successful local watchdog.
In the meantime we welcome you to the AMA and hope this is the start of a long relationship that is beneficial to both of us -- to you for solving this problem and to us for the pleasure of adding your name to our member family. For it is through continued membership from you and all of your riding buddies that we can have the resources to fight these fights.
There is no need to Copy Mr. Moreland and Mr. Maher on the future correspondence since both are out of the office right now and I will keep them abreast of what is going on with this.
Terry Lee Cook
Grassroots Manager
American Motorcyclist Association
Rights, Riding, Racing
13515 Yarmouth Drive
Pickerington, OH 43147
614-856-1900 ext. 1288
________________________________________________________________________________
My Response:
Terry,
thanks for the quick response and for the information. I would appreciate if you could send a letter to the parking authority asking them to reconsider their policy. I understand this may not result in a positive outcome, but its a start.
Regarding the AMA Community Council, I'd be interested in this, except for the fact that I live roughly 30 miles from New Haven in a semi-rural town. I use the garage because I'm a rail commuter to NY city on occassion. Logistically, it'd be difficult for me to effect any change in New Haven, and politically an out-of-towner wouldn't carry any weight. Plus, as an aside, I currently have my hands full volunteering in my town (East Hampton) to chair a Brownfields Redevelopment Grant project - we're trying to clean up contamination from old mill buildings to get them re-occupied with viable businesses.
I belong to "The Chain Gang" - the BMW F650 riders club. I'm keeping them apprised of developments on this issue hoping that if not in New Haven, then my actions and AMA's assistance could help in another community.
I'll let you know if I receive any responses from the New Haven officials.
Thanks much. Dave
Dave.
__________________________________________________________________________________
Terry Cook
David:
This is similar to situations we are experiencing with many other automated parking garages around the country. For more information on this issue I encourage you to go to http://www.amadirectlink.com/features/Gates.asp and read the article written in American Motorcyclist about this issue.
One of our AMA Legislative Affairs Specialist has been doing some more research on the parking garage engineering. We hope to someday offer another engineering solution to prevent this situation but it has not come yet.
I applaud you for writing the parking authority asking them to rethink their policy. A letter from a customer means much more than one from an un-attached Association.
If you would like I’ll also write a letter to the authority asking them to reconsider policy. I will send a visible courtesy copy of it to you to show them you mean business. But please know that this might not solve the situation. This could be a long and protracted battle. We will continue to work on this with you to resolve it but we also need to depend on you for the local solution.
This is where the AMA Community Council could come into play. AMA Community Councils work closely with the AMA Government Relations Department and serve as the first line of both offense and defense when local issues arise. Local, state and even national issues are much easier to handle if we are organized for action ahead of time and do not wait for the officials to completely shut down the area.
Though there is not an active Community Council in New Haven I would welcome the chance at working with you to build one. Just let me know if this avenue sounds interesting and I’ll gladly send you the information to get started and then continue to work with you to make AMA Community Council – New Haven a successful local watchdog.
In the meantime we welcome you to the AMA and hope this is the start of a long relationship that is beneficial to both of us -- to you for solving this problem and to us for the pleasure of adding your name to our member family. For it is through continued membership from you and all of your riding buddies that we can have the resources to fight these fights.
There is no need to Copy Mr. Moreland and Mr. Maher on the future correspondence since both are out of the office right now and I will keep them abreast of what is going on with this.
Terry Lee Cook
Grassroots Manager
American Motorcyclist Association
Rights, Riding, Racing
13515 Yarmouth Drive
Pickerington, OH 43147
614-856-1900 ext. 1288
________________________________________________________________________________
My Response:
Terry,
thanks for the quick response and for the information. I would appreciate if you could send a letter to the parking authority asking them to reconsider their policy. I understand this may not result in a positive outcome, but its a start.
Regarding the AMA Community Council, I'd be interested in this, except for the fact that I live roughly 30 miles from New Haven in a semi-rural town. I use the garage because I'm a rail commuter to NY city on occassion. Logistically, it'd be difficult for me to effect any change in New Haven, and politically an out-of-towner wouldn't carry any weight. Plus, as an aside, I currently have my hands full volunteering in my town (East Hampton) to chair a Brownfields Redevelopment Grant project - we're trying to clean up contamination from old mill buildings to get them re-occupied with viable businesses.
I belong to "The Chain Gang" - the BMW F650 riders club. I'm keeping them apprised of developments on this issue hoping that if not in New Haven, then my actions and AMA's assistance could help in another community.
I'll let you know if I receive any responses from the New Haven officials.
Thanks much. Dave
posted by dbtgeology at 9:35 AM
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