Congrats to the management company of the Whitestone Shopping Center for posting signs about their parking policy and following through on it.
I am sure they will get plenty of grief from drivers who only left their car “for a minute” in the fire zone, and those arrogant people who create their own personal parking spots at the end of the rows. These people are only concerned about themselves, and make it more difficult for those who follow the rules to navigate the parking lots safely.
Are they also going after the lazy and selfish ignoramuses who wait in the handicapped spots for their spouses or friends? That would really be appreciated by those who legally need those spaces.
Let us hope that other management companies follow suit.
Rick Duskiewicz
Bellerose Manor
No parking = fewer shoppers
Parking in Whitestone has been getting scarcer and scarcer.
Personally, I rarely shop in Whitestone anymore. I like to park my car and do all my errands at the same time. The more the parking lots become off limits, the more I avoid the stores.
I realize I am only one person, but if there are more people like me, the shops will have fewer shoppers not more. Since the signs have gone up at the Whitestone Shopping center, I only go there when I must.
I have not been in Walgreen's since they put up the restrictions several years ago. It is a waste of time and fuel to go to the pharmacy and then have to get back into the car, find a parking space, and go to the post office. If I go to the library and then the supermarket, it means parking, getting into the car and then moving it for the next chore.
I suggest the shops get smart, find another way to monitor those that take advantage of the parking lots, but allow the rest of us to go about our business without penalizing us.
Joyce Moss
Whitestone
Beware parking at Key Food too!
This is in response to your recent article in The Queens Courier headlined “Beware when parking in Whitestone.” You should also warn your readers about the back parking lot behind Key Food. My 91-year-old grandmother parked there by the trees along the side of the Russian Church to go to the adjacent library about two weeks ago. When she returned her car was missing and she thought it had been stolen. After she ran into Key Food in a state of panic, the manager told her the car was not stolen but towed.
She was told to wait outside in the cold (one of the very few cold days we had this month) for about twenty minutes until the car was returned. She did not have the $120 towing fee and the very rude tow operators told her she had five minutes to come up with the money or they would bring the car back to Middle Village. My cousin, who works in the shopping center, paid the fee. My grandmother was completely shaken and upset by the whole ordeal and how she was treated.
As of two weeks ago, there were no tow-away-zone signs where my grandmother parked. Therefore she truly had no idea about the new policy where you cannot leave the lot after you park your car. There is adequate signage in the front lot about the fire lanes and towing cars away if you leave the premises but NOT in the back lot where she parked.
I called Redmont Realty Corp. in Manhattan and spoke to an extremely rude and arrogant individual; unfortunately, I did not get his name. I explained the situation to him and he said, “What? Only old people live in Whitestone?” I told him that I don't have a problem with the change but you have to adequately warn people. This individual told me he was getting more signs but I told him the signs have to be in place BEFORE you tow somebody's car - not after! At that point, he told me “Well, did your grandmother learn her lesson?”
We have never been treated so shabbily by a company. Therefore, I am contemplating a civil action and will be filing a complaint with Consumer Affairs.
Kristina Finch
Whitestone
Transit strike was unnecessary
A year after the bitter labor dispute that prompted the three-day transit strike, state arbitrators announce they're imposing a contract nearly identical to the original deal the Transport Workers Union voted down, then ratified, only for the MTA to reject. The MTA said the contract proves that last year's illegal transit strike was unnecessary. I completely heartily agree, for the TWU left many New Yorkers out in the cold. I think most New Yorkers will not forget, added to the fact it was right before Christmas. Let us not forget the firefighter who was seriously injured while he was riding his bike trying to get to his firehouse because there were no buses or trains. The TWU officers should be ashamed of themselves for calling this strike and what they did to the citizens of this great city of ours and for no good reason, except to serve their own personal or political agendas.
Frederick R. Bedell Jr.
Bellerose
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