This morning I went to Precinct #16 at River Valley Church to vote with The Wife and The Rooster. We were there just after 7 AM when the doors opened and found a couple of people waiting in line to register to vote and a few more who were actively voting. The Wife was done first and waited patiently by the door for my OCD tendencies to complete themselves with my perfectly filled in circles avoiding another Lizard People debacle as people realized I voted not for Mayor Mary or Ryan Moe but for Mickey Mouse instead.
As we were exiting the polling place an Apple Valley Code Enforcement vehicle came tearing into the parking lot from the direction of Pilot Knob Road. I stood dumbfounded, while holding my child behind me, wondering where he was going to end up. After swinging wide he parked kitty-corner 80% of the way into a handicapped parking space in front of the church, got out of the truck, and went inside. At this time there were no lights flashing (there are only yellow ones on top of the vehicle) and no other individual was inside the cab. There were plenty of spaces, including one directly behind and directly adjacent to where he chose to park his truck, which were open and not handicapped accessible only. Shocked I snapped a photo and went on my way shaking my head.
Now, I realize that people are in a rush–heck, we were in a rush this morning as I normally like to be on the 477 headed to Minneapolis well before 7 AM but I took the time to park legally and go about my day like a normal human being. While I probably would not have taken a photo of any other car parked illegally in that space (but would have provided a good head shake at their stupidity while wondering where the cops were), I have to admit that a representative of the City of Apple Valley should be held to a much higher standard.
What do you think about this one? Is there any valid justification for a Code Enforcement Officer with the City of Apple Valley to travel dangerously through a busy parking lot and then park illegally in a handicapped spot–especially with no indication that it was necessary (i.e. lights flashing)? Whatever you have to say about this one go ahead and comment on as I’d love to hear your thoughts.
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November 2nd, 2010 at 10:48 am
Did you ask him WTF he was doing?
99.9% chance you are right — that’s some serious douchebaggery.
00.1% chance there may have been some legit reason.
November 2nd, 2010 at 10:54 am
I took the photo and walked back to my car to open it for my wife and kid. As I did that he hopped back into his truck and tore out of the lot again. No time to chit-chat.
November 2nd, 2010 at 11:03 am
MUST……………VOTE………………..MUST………….VOTE
He was in a hurry to cast his ballot!
November 2nd, 2010 at 11:33 am
Chad, my vote’s with you. It’s amazing what idiots do with a misguided/misplaced power of authority.
November 2nd, 2010 at 11:37 am
He didn’t have enough time to vote nor do anything official as he was in and out in short order.
November 2nd, 2010 at 12:17 pm
Unless he hobbies in heart surgery, he doesn’t have a reason to endanger people, IMO.
Drives me crazy the way people rip through parking lots. It also drives me crazy how people let their kids run through parking lots. That’s what hands are for.
BTW, my family and I voted at Shepherd of the Valley this morning. It bothered me that the sign-in booth was situated under a stained glass window in the shape of a cross. I didn’t think that was appropriate at all.
November 2nd, 2010 at 12:20 pm
I am also quite uncomfortable voting in houses of worship mostly because I am concerned for the welfare of others as the lightning bolts may hurt them as they come down on me while I walk through the door.
November 2nd, 2010 at 12:26 pm
LOL! Thank you for the laugh, Bill.
November 2nd, 2010 at 12:51 pm
So he was parked there for less than 2 min? Is it possible he was dispatched there to look for a violation? Lots of violations at polling places on a day like today. Officers should always drive with due care and it sounds as if this officer may not have in this cases, but it is possible he/she was on official business.
November 2nd, 2010 at 12:57 pm
Yeah, we should move the voting to somewhere free of political/social overtones.
Like the BPAC or the Apple Valley Transit Station.
November 2nd, 2010 at 1:20 pm
It could have been do to an emergency “bathroom break” situation. That could explain his erratic driving and parking.
November 2nd, 2010 at 1:36 pm
If it were Burnsville, I would say he was on a secred mission for the Mayor and did not want to draw attention to it by using lights and siren. Over in Burnsville, when the Mayor speaks everyone jumps to it and common sense in out-the-window.
November 2nd, 2010 at 1:54 pm
Maybe he forgot his wallet. People can act pretty crazy when they think they lost their wallet.
I say give him a pass.
November 2nd, 2010 at 2:00 pm
Hm, someplace free of political/social/religious overtones …. That would be the mall.
Maybe FEMA’s got some trailers we could use.
November 2nd, 2010 at 3:17 pm
Seeing police officers disobey the rules that the public itself must follow is not an unusual sight. If called on it they will always come up with a reason why their behavior is justified. Thus there ends up being little point in trying to figure out WTF is going on.
The voting in a church thing is pretty common, in particular in rural locations. That it was done in Apple Valley seems odd but my guess is that there were no schools in the precinct that had space available.
Sounds like a good question for Jason DeRusha; How are polling places selected, and why a church in a bustling suburban area and not some public facility?
November 2nd, 2010 at 7:52 pm
That’s a good point, Mikeh, although there’s a big junior high just down the way. Too bad if the athletic teams have to lose the use of their gym for a day; it’s good for the kids to see the adults voting.
This reminded me of when my mom would take me along with her to vote. It was either in the basement of the Catholic school my family attended, or at the American Legion across the street.
November 2nd, 2010 at 8:01 pm
So what’s wrong with voting in a church building? Does this somehow mean that voters will want to start saying the rosary or “Our Father” or something? The church that opens up its space is serving a legitimate secular purpose.
November 2nd, 2010 at 8:13 pm
I’m not doubting the sincerity of the churches in offering the space, and I like that they’re giving their seal of approval on the democratic process.
It’s the cross behind the sign-up table that bothers me.
See, I was raised Catholic, and I’d never even entered a church of another denomination until high school, when I was encouraged to study other religions. Churches have power, because they’re the spiritual base of a community. And even though I’m a “recovering Catholic,” when I enter a place of worship, I feel a certain respect and awe.
I’m not sure how a Muslim or a Jew or a Buddhist or etc. would feel about approaching a table under that cross. I can only say how I feel.
November 2nd, 2010 at 9:01 pm
Churches regularly lend out their space. AA meetings, Alanon meetings, cub scout, boy scout meetings.
I tweeted to Derusha, he basically said, because churches are usually empty on tuesday, and schools are not. duh.
Interesting election results tonight. Not all that unexpected on the national front.
November 2nd, 2010 at 11:13 pm
Yeah, I agree, Mikeh. Interesting that things aren’t quite as polarized as the media projected. I think that I’m going to be cool with the results: voters showed up, they said their piece. Now, peace.
November 3rd, 2010 at 8:49 am
Anybody who is intimidated by a cross when voting shouldn’t be allowed to vote.
Edited by Bill for inappropriate content.
November 3rd, 2010 at 2:24 pm
If a church doesn’t work, then neither should a school. At least not when a school levy is on the ballot. One voting place on the news was the actual city council meeting room. That should go too. Can’t use court houses because judges are on the ballot.
I got it, let’s build a special voting building in every city. Or, if someone feel they will be influenced by their voting location, they could just vote absentee or vote early. (I don’t want to trash anyones feeling here, just don’t think its practical to remove all outside influence when voting)
November 4th, 2010 at 7:26 am
Whoops. You forgot schools aren’t acceptable because strangers have access to the schools. I think we should all use online voting. No parking hassle. No lines. No going out in bad weather.
November 4th, 2010 at 8:47 am
I am handicapped now due to an accident while assisting a stranded motorist. I see violations all the time and outright abuse of the permits and spaces. I would love to see how many tags are issued in Apple Valley for the misuse of those parking spaces that people like me rely on. While I am venting here, what really burns me is the Mall of America, where a handicapped person has to pay $30 to use an electric cart. That is not “Minnesota nice” for the millions of tourists, many who are handicapped, who visit the Mall of America only to find they can’t see the mall with the rest of their party. Where are the ADA people?
November 4th, 2010 at 1:07 pm
Electric carts may be expensive to rent, but they also offer wheel chairs for either free or MUCH cheaper (I don’t recall now). The handicapped members of my group found the wheel chair to be quite adequate. I don’t know that the ADA requires the mall to provide equipment, just ways to get from floor to floor when a person can’t navigate stairs. The elevators serve this need.
November 4th, 2010 at 3:36 pm
When with my mother at MOA, I spent an hour and a half on a wild goose chase back and forth across the mall, running after rumours of wheelchairs. We never got one for her, and she sat waiting patiently while I was treated very poorly by mall employees. One told me that they don’t owe anyone the use of a wheelchair. True, but they really need a system for acquiring one when they are available. We never did manage to shop. Welcome to Minnesota, Mom.
July 18th, 2012 at 7:02 am
[...] seems to me that all city representatives should act in accordance with the law regardless of situation, especially when they’re in a marked vehicle. In this particular instance there is a [...]