I’m not a big fan of extra laws and rules, but recently I have had several friends who work DT and customers comment on the imbeciles who think then need to park their air-craft carrier trucks on Phillips avenue.

Many have suggested there should be a city ordinance against it and a ticket issued. I think common sense would solve the problem, I guess if these people had some they wouldn’t park this way. They would choose a side street or a parking ramp. And why would someone use this as a personal form of transportation anyway? I have never seen a grubby contractor get out of one of these vehicles DT.

My biggest concern is if there was an emergency DT and a firetruck had to navigate around one of these monstrosities. I have almost hit the rear end of one these ‘trucks’.

Which poses another question. If you don’t see one of these trucks hanging out into the street and you hit it, whose fault is it?

Just some pondering.

But seriously, park somewhere else.

22 Thoughts on “Extended vehicle ordinance

  1. Ugh, those are the worst. It’s bad enough at places like Best Buy, but trying to navigate around those morons parked on Phillips is awful.

  2. Maybe a suggestive sign DT would work? I mean, who is really this arrogant and stupid? Of course, maybe public parking can hire a right-wing media company to come up with a marketing campaign for $45 grand to inform peeps. Something like, “Don’t cross the gold P.”

  3. It is also about ‘Entitlement’. Kinda like WM saying they can build wherever they want to 🙂

  4. The worst on Phillips is trying to back out of a spot when one of these gems is parked next to you. Just blindly ease the car out slowly and pray to God that everyone already on the road yields…

  5. I know of one city that changed its zoning ordinances for required setbacks for front yards from 20 feet to 25 feet SPECICALLY because of these extra long trucks parked in driveways blocking sidewalks. Talk about imposing zoning rules just to accommodate a “special” class of people.

  6. I know of one city that changed its zoning ordinances for required setbacks for front yards from 20 feet to 25 feet SPECIFICLY because of these extra long trucks parked in driveways blocking sidewalks. Talk about imposing zoning rules just to accommodate a “special” class of people.

  7. anonymous on September 5, 2013 at 6:01 am said:

    This type of parking is exactly what has just been approved in front of Lloyd’s new RESIDENTIAL development on North Phillips. You know, what’s commonly called Phillips to the Falls.

    The Planning Commission, the Council and DTSF saw NO PROBLEM with this plan when they all rubber-stamped it for Craig Lloyd!!

    What visionaries we have leading us!!!

  8. Testor15 on September 5, 2013 at 8:12 am said:

    Just something more for the Golden P group to do, mark big trucks.

  9. OldSlewFoot on September 5, 2013 at 8:49 am said:

    Just restrict the Curb Weight of the vehicles to 4,000 lb to the diagonal parking on Phillips. You get rid of ALL the big vehicles that should not park there.

  10. @anonymous – Are you saying that diagonal parking is infeasible in this location? It’s a problem with idiots who drive these behemoths, not the parking setup itself. The diagonal parking along Phillips downtown is a big reason for why it’s so pleasant to walk on the sidewalk there – the parking provides a nice buffer and slows down the traffic to a pleasant speed. Ever see anyone speed along that stretch of Phillips?

    Man, it just seems like some people will find any way they can to complain about the Phillips to the Falls stuff. I’m not saying it shouldn’t be criticized, but at least make an effort to make your complaints reasonable.

  11. Since you show a picture of a F150 SuperCrew with the standard box, I checked the length… it is 231.9 inches (or 19.3 feet).The Chevy Suburban is almost as long at 222.40 in.

    However – perhaps we shouldn’t just be complaining about trucks. In the early 1970s, Cadillac was selling series 75 models (Fleetwood) which were 252 inches long (21 feet!) and a Buick Estate station wagon was 231.8 in long (a tenth of an inch shorter than the F150 in your image).

    So your option isn’t to simply ban “big trucks” because there are plenty of big cars out there too. So now you will have to simply limit the length of a vehicle – but let me ask… do you have any idea how long your car is? Do we really want our parking enforcement officers standing there with a tape measure?

    That being said, if someone parks a dually quad-cab truck with a longbox on it… yes it is going to be left sticking out – and no they shouldn’t park there.

    There are actually already rules about blocking traffic and sticking out of a parking space – so if this situation occurs I’m sure they can get a ticket.

    I have to say – if this is what has become a point of complaint… our city must be awful close to paradise.

  12. Doesn’t matter to me, I just hear a lot of Downtowners talk about this. A LOT! I am curious why tickets haven’t been issued if it is already against the law to impede traffic. You don’t need a tape measure either to see it either. Just wait until a cop car or firetruck sideswipes one of these vehicles . . .

  13. Testor15 on September 5, 2013 at 1:45 pm said:

    The other view of the big vehicle issue is when these units park, very few of them actually park in the middle of the spot but actually crowd one way other other. Thus impeding the use of other parking slots.

  14. The thing with the other long vehicles mentioned, other than the Suburban, is they aren’t as tall, and with the sedans the trunk/hood is lower than the roof. When I was still driving it used to annoy be when these tall vehicles, including SUVs would park so close to the intersections, even the ones with stop signs/lights that in order to see if anything was coming you had to pull part way out into the intersection in order to determine if it was safe to proceed across the intersection.

  15. In the early 1970s, they may have had big “Caddies” (Actually, I think the big fin “Caddies” from the early Sixties were the largest(?)), but back then they parallel parked them in Sioux Falls and if they couldn’t find a big enough space…. they just moved-on….

    Here’s some nostalgia for you all:

    http://webapp1.dlib.indiana.edu/collections/cushman/full/P10228.jpg

  16. Wow, looks like a real city!

    BTW, holy crap, is that 3 lanes + 2 parking lanes on Phillips? It’s hard to believe, but the right-of-way for Phillips Ave is just as wide as it is for Minnesota Ave. It just shows how pleasant (or unpleasant) a street can be, depending on how you allocate the space.

    Here’s a fun little tool for the bored armchair planner: streetmix.net

  17. Ironically I know of at least TWO city directors that drive these types of trucks.

  18. Tom H., I think the sidewalks were smaller back then. That was before McDonalds began to “Super Size” everyone… Now I know why we need the big trucks……

  19. grudznick on September 6, 2013 at 4:09 pm said:

    I wish I drove a truck like that. Everybody should. 🙂

  20. grudznick on September 6, 2013 at 4:09 pm said:

    Mr. E offtopic but do you have a “Gant List” of all of Mr. Gants messups and hoseups?

  21. Sounds like some people have size envy. If you can’t drive well enough to avoid side swiping a quarter-ton pickup legally parked or you fear for your life backing out onto Philips I have a suggestion…

    Stay home or park somewhere more compatible with your driving ability (like a surface lot with 150 feet of asphalt in every direction).

    Also before anyone makes any more assumptions about the types of people who drive these “big trucks”, no I don’t own one. However I can understand why so many people do – there are lot of things you just can’t easily do in a car, especially if you have kids, hobbies, or kids with hobbies. I’d love to have a four door truck, but it hasn’t made it to the top of my priority list quite yet.

  22. Winston on September 7, 2013 at 6:25 pm said:

    Craig, I am not envious. I happen to drive the largest SUV ever placed on the market (Don’t tell Al Gore that!), but I also know enough to not park on Phillips Avenue, and I often park out on the “South 40” of any big box parking lot….. Unfortunately, some big truck owners think their vehicle presence is a birth right….

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