parking ticket

[bigrobdsp]

I recieved a notice in the mail that I had been cited for a parking violation two years ago by the UNT police department. I assume that I was there for a fraternity alumni meeting or somthing. its hard to tell since it was 2 years ago. when I called to talk with them they informed me that I had to pay for the ticket and a late fee for the ticket that I didnt know about. the lady on the phone was very rude and it pissed me off, but I just decided to pay the damn thing to get it over with. unfortunatly they cant take payment. you have to send a money order or actually go to the stupid police office. she advised that if I had to park anywhere on campus that I needed to stop by the police station and get a visitors parking permit. I am sure that most of you are thinking "whats he bitching about, he shouldnt have parked in the parking sticker only lot in the first place", and you are probably right. But I dont care if your right. by making me go get a money order and send it to them they are wasting a significant portion of my time when they should just dismiss the ticket. they need to come up with some other way to handle both issuing and payment of parking tickets. there have to be 10,000 credit card machines at that school and they dont have one in the police office? this whole thing is rediculous and I am upset.

Edited August 17, 2006 by bigrobdsp

[untbowler]

just another great Alumni relation technique used by good ole UNT

[untgirl04]

They're paid on commission, so of course they want you to spend as much money as possible. My dad found this out directly when trying to deal with the parking office...

The week before my graduation, I went to the Health Center for what turned out to be literally a life or death matter. The issue was with my leg, so I couldn't walk very far, and I could barely drive. There were no available parking spaces in front of the building, so I parked as far away as I could in the "D" lot next door. Turns out, I had to have someone drive me to the emergency room and ended up in ICU for 2.5 days. While still in ICU, my dad went to move my car and found that I had a parking ticket. He went to the parking office to talk to them about it, and they said that I had to pay the ticket. He explained to them that there wasn't enough parking and that I was in ICU, but they wouldn't budge. That's when we found out that they work on commission. He finally talked to a supervisor and was able to waive the ticket, after offering to make a donation instead. Overall, the whole thing was rediculous.

[meangreendork]

The whole parking system at UNT is really set up as a revenue generator. If it was tuned to make sure that people like instructors and admin got the parking they need to be where they need to be on-time, then the rules/regs would be entirely different.

I'm still pissed about getting a parking ticket for using the parking lot across the street from the Rec Center on a Friday afternoon during May MiniMester...

...the campus is basically empty during May Mini, and even more since a lot of those classes aren't even in session on Friday!

[bigrobdsp]

I would much rather make a $100 dollar donation to the school than pay $60 for the parking ticket.

[MeanGreenBuzz]

I'm with you Rob, but what UNT doesn't get is when you @#$% people when they are students it leaves a bad taste in their mouth and makes then not want to donate when they get out.

My parking story was freshman year. I had just gotten my new car on a friday afternoon and couldn't make it back to the UNT parking office by 5 so I called and asked the lady what I should do. She told me "take the sticker off your old car put it on the dash of your new car and let me change the license plate number in your file, then come in on Monday and get a new sticker that will attach to the windshield." So I do that and come Monday morning I go out to get in my car to go get my new sticker and I have a ticket on my windshield for my sticker not properly being adhered... they wouldn't dismiss the ticket and when I asked the lady she told me she would have never said that and she would have told me to come get a temporary pass... which was 20-30 bucks at the time... and was the proper procedure. Needless to say I was pissed.

Either way something needs to change at the UNTPD. It has to be one of the least student friendly PDs at any college campus.

[bigrobdsp]

My wife told me that I deserve to be fined for all the horrible things that I use to do to those meter maids when I was in college. when I think about it I was really creative in coming up with ways to turn their days to s*&t after they made the parking lot in front of greek row all sticker only parking, so I probably do deserve it.

[emmitt01]

Well, take solace in the fact that your (and everyone else's) parking ticket fees go to help fund the NORTH TEXAS SWAT TEAM.

Yeah, I said it, NT has a SWAT team. Sleep well at night with that vision.

[meangreendork]

The university has a SWAT team? I didn't know about this.

[MeanGreenBuzz]

Some how I sleep worse at night...

[UNT_playmaker]

Some how I sleep worse at night...

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Yeah me too, man the NT police are really wannabe's....

[claiblaw]

Let me know where and when you received the ticket. I would like to follow through on this. Does this meand we need to get a "permit" to park across from the frat house at homecoming? Dan DSP alum

[Bryan316]

All this revenue and the UNT Police can't be bothered to update their service patch from the old diving daffy eagle.

Oh, is it legal for them to use an actual license plate in the advertisement of the Highway Beautification Project? Before the redesign with the new logos, they had mine on their pamphlets and claimed to not know that it belonged to someone.

Edited August 29, 2006 by Bryan316

[bigrobdsp]

"Let me know where and when you received the ticket. I would like to follow through on this. Does this meand we need to get a "permit" to park across from the frat house at homecoming? Dan DSP alum"

I got my ticket in Febuary of 03 apparently. I am not sure why I was there, but I imagine that it was an alumni meeting or somthing like that. I can only assume that they relax the rules for an event like homecoming, but I dont know.

Edited August 29, 2006 by bigrobdsp

[MeanGreenNation]

When I was a student I apparently got a ticket in front of the Student Union one night. I never saw the ticket on my window. I did not know until a year later when registering for classes and had blocks. I had to pay the ticket along with a late fee and an additional late fee from the tuition office since it had rolled over there for the blocks. I tried to refute it, but they did not buy my story. I just wish I had shown up on the hearing date rather than relying on my story on the piece of paper. Oh well, the whole system was jacked then and is still messed up.

[Mean'n'Green07]

They're paid on commission, so of course they want you to spend as much money as possible. My dad found this out directly when trying to deal with the parking office...

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They aren't paid on commission, they get paid $8 an hour and get a .50 cent raise for each year they stay. Last year I went drinking at the garage with a few of them who work there. So each time you see them and want to yell at them remember this:

1. They are poor students trying to make extra money, they're just doint what they're told.

2. The administration makes up the parking rules and procedures, they just enforce them

I don't agree with all the parking policies, but unfornatly theres a massive parking shortage everywhere except Fouts field. If the parking department and administration build parking garages to solve the problem a parking sticker would cost about 500 bucks, so they're in a lose lose situation. Like I said eariler I don't agree with all the parking policies but don't get mad at the meter maids, get mad at the big wigs.

[untgirl04]

They aren't paid on commission, they get paid $8 an hour and get a .50 cent raise for each year they stay. Last year I went drinking at the garage with a few of them who work there. So each time you see them and want to yell at them remember this:

1. They are poor students trying to make extra money, they're just doint what they're told.

2. The administration makes up the parking rules and procedures, they just enforce them

I don't agree with all the parking policies, but unfornatly theres a massive parking shortage everywhere except Fouts field. If the parking department and administration build parking garages to solve the problem a parking sticker would cost about 500 bucks, so they're in a lose lose situation. Like I said eariler I don't agree with all the parking policies but don't get mad at the meter maids, get mad at the big wigs.

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If they're not paid on commission, then I find it interesting that the Parking Office told my dad that they were. Perhaps they were trying to drum up sympathy?

I understand following orders, and my rant was directed more at the Parking Office and administration than at the meter maids. However, the meter maids don't need to be jerks about it either. There are plenty of times I've seen them lurking around cars and waiting for the meters to expire, just so they can write the ticket.

[bigrobdsp]

They aren't paid on commission, they get paid $8 an hour and get a .50 cent raise for each year they stay. Last year I went drinking at the garage with a few of them who work there. So each time you see them and want to yell at them remember this:

1. They are poor students trying to make extra money, they're just doint what they're told.

2. The administration makes up the parking rules and procedures, they just enforce them

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I looked deep down and realized that you were right, I was really overlooking the plight of the college parking violation enforcement officer... then I called my old fraternity house and instructed them on the proper trajectory to fire cherry tomatoes out of a water baloon launcher into that parking lot across the street from greek row (one of my favorite weekday afterschool activities). I told them that I would pay any tickets they recieved provided that they could get me photographic evidence of a meeter maid with rotten fruit squished on them. I will let you know how it turns out.

[Mean'n'Green07]

I looked deep down and realized that you were right, I was really overlooking the plight of the college parking violation enforcement officer... then I called my old fraternity house and instructed them on the proper trajectory to fire cherry tomatoes out of a water baloon launcher into that parking lot across the street from greek row (one of my favorite weekday afterschool activities). I  told them that I would pay any tickets they recieved provided that they could get me photographic evidence of a meeter maid with rotten fruit squished on them. I will let you know how it turns out.

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The UNT police department might consider that assault with a deadly weapon

[meangreendork]

The people enforcing policies are, for the most part, not to blame. All of my anger is directed at the policies...and they wreak of "income generator" as opposed to deterrent.

Funny enough, I think either Corinth or that other just-south-of Denton town wants to install speeding-cams on the freeway. It's an easier way to cut down on speeding, but I'm really worried that its going to generate a safety hazard. It also goes without saying that this also wreaks of "income generator" and not deterrent.

[GreenBrigadeDebbie]

I understand the frustrations of everyone who has had an issue with the parking office...their responses are pathetic and need an overhaul....But as you well know, the regulations and how they are handled are not going to change, so the only thing that we can do to avoid the office is to obey the awful regulations they have.

[Gator]

I understand the frustrations of everyone who has had an issue with the parking office...their responses are pathetic and need an overhaul....But as you well know, the regulations and how they are handled are not going to change, so the only thing that we can do to avoid the office is to obey the awful regulations they have.

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Can top all of these.

My son got a ticket while visiting a friend on an unnamed campus. He was not a student at the school. Two years later my daughter enrolls at the same place. Shortly after she is notified that she must pay a fine as the car was registered to her given address. She has since graduated and they are still waiting to collect.

[res1dg16]

OMG .... enough already - park legally or get a freakin' ticket!

[MeanGreenBuzz]

OMG .... enough already - park legally or get a freakin' ticket! 

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Sometimes you do (or think you do according to what the parking ticket office tells you to do) and still get one.