Ticketing Parents at Schools in West Miami (transporting, houses)

[Aned]

Instead of securing our schools, West Miami Police Officers keep ticketing parents dropping off students. It has become the norm for WMPD to deploy officers near schools who under the facade of protecting our kids issue citations to those parents parking momentarily to drop off their children. We understand the city needs money. However, officers cannot protect and issue tickets at the same time, which is a shameful practice when the victim is a parent just transporting his or her children. Because I find this ticketing so egregious, I propose the eradication of these officers' duties near schools. It would be nice if they could concentrate their efforts into looking out for our kids' safety instead of embarrassing the whole department by irritating working families taking their children to school. In reality, there are only a few places to legally park in front of the school building. But it seems like that is too hard for West Miami PD to understand, situation that gets exacerbated due to the officers' lack of consideration.

[MadManofBethesda]

Originally Posted by Aned

Because I find this ticketing so egregious, I propose the eradication of these officers' presence near schools.

And I propose the eradication of all obnoxious parents who believe that they are above the law and believe that they should be able to do whatever the hell they want rather than obey traffic and parking laws around schools. The City of West Miami should raise the parking violation fee tenfold in order to get the attention of such parents and perhaps they will stop their obnoxious, self-important behavior.

Here's a suggestion for you: Instead of violating the law because you believe your time too important to waste on actually parking in a legal parking space, how about driving your little rugrats a block past the school, actually parking your car, and then walking with them to the front door of the school if you feel they aren't capable of handling that distance on their own?

[straight shooter]

Typical occurrences found in small municipalities throughout Miami-Dade County.

The parents should unite and voice their concerns at a School Board Meeting. Demand that the School Board address the issue with the city. If there is not enough adequate parking than the School Board needs to find a remedy to the problem. This problem is found at most schools during drop off and pick up times. Many parents are disrespectful and park there cars anywhere they please but on the other hand what are they to do.

[Aned]

Most spaces have been rediculously designated for illegal parking, leaving, at best, one legal space for every 20 vehicles. Besides, kids with disabilities are unable to walk by themselves and need constant monitoring. It is all about applying common sense, being flexible and considerate, and building good community relations.

[tallrick]

I wonder how they did it back in the 50's when many of those schools were built?

[straight shooter]

^^ I am sure kids back then either walked or rode their bikes to school. Not only was it safer but most kids lived closer to their schools. Most things were simpler and less complicated.

[Aned]

Back then, for sure, people could park their vehicles freely in most places; tow trucks would not dedicate themselves to complicate people's life, you wouldn't see signs everywhere prohibiting parking, and corruption was not an issue in Miami as it is nowadays.

[MadManofBethesda]

I was born and raised in West Miami and still drive past the elementary school several times a week, so I am very familiar with the situation the OP is complaining about. The problem is the parents not the police! In fact, the police are stationed at the school to protect the children from the idiot parents who drive and try to park any which way in order to get themselves and their little darlings as close to the school as possible. Which sounds safer to you: keeping the area free from parked cars, or having little children walking between cars and not knowing when one may pull in or out of traffic?

[Aned]

Even though you get too emotional when arguing your point, thank for, at least, being honest. But your comments would improve tremendously if you quit being so biased. To prove how biased your comments are, I will mention that you fail to say, since you are familiar with the area, that most people park over the lawn located between the sidewalk and the road, which is what the officers prefer. Being disrespectful towards the parents is another characteristic of your opinions, sign of your ignorance. I hope you were not educated in that school. Maybe your way for discussing this topic is what reveals why you cannot understand the fact that ticketing a parent dropping off her children at school is only an act that can be performed by an HP, no excuses for it. Comprehend?

[MadManofBethesda]

Originally Posted by Aned

Even though you get too emotional when arguing your point, thank for, at least, being honest. But your comments would improve tremendously if you quit being so biased. To prove how biased your comments are, I will mention that you fail to say, since you are familiar with the area, that most people park over the lawn located between the sidewalk and the road, which is what the officers prefer. Being disrespectful towards the parents is another characteristic of your opinions, sign of your ignorance. I hope you were not educated in that school. Maybe your way for discussing this topic is what reveals why you cannot understand the fact that ticketing a parent dropping off her children at school is only an act that can be performed by an HP, no excuses for it. Comprehend?

Your point about me being abrasive in my response is a valid one. I could have done a much better job of making my point sans the insults and for that I apologize. However, your comment about me being biased could not be further from the truth. I have no child at that school, nor am I affected personally by anything that happens there; consequently, I would state that my opinion is much more objective than the obviously subjective rant of a parent who doesn't want to observe posted parking signs and then complains that s/he is subject to being fined for doing so and calls for the "eradication" of the police presence that is there to keep the children safe.

There are plenty of available parking spots across the street from the school, on the swales of all the neighboring houses to the school on both sides of the street, not to mention up and down 59th Ave. on both sides of 16th Street. The only place where parking, standing, and even stopping is completely prohibited is directly in front of the school itself. The reason for this is patently obvious: it keeps the sightlines clear for the kids and enhances the safety of everyone walking to and from the school building itself. It is only the parents who flaunt these signs and insist on dropping their kids off right at the school itself who are causing a problem.