So our building is downtown … and as you surely know – parking downtown can be a b*#tch. It’s bad enough that a parking ticket will cost you $25 and $50 if you don’t pay it in time … but if you fail to pay – you get the Denver Boot.
This past weekend I saw numerous cars with the new Denver Boot. Coincidentally, this past weekend was the Parade of Lights festivities downtown. I happen to think they put more meter maids out in anticipation of all the suburban folks coming downtown for the festivities. The new Denver Boot apparently has a keypad that you can use to release the boot yourself after paying over the phone. Of course you have to deliver the boot back to them right away, or pay a daily fine for failure to do so.
I got the Boot once – I think it costed like $130 + my unpaid ticket costs to get things resolved. It can’t possibly cost that much for them to install the Boot on the car. I can’t imagine all the money they pull in.
What really blows my mind is that they can effectively deem your car immobile to force you to pay money that you’re being forced to pay because you violated their parking rules somehow. My personal favorite was when I got a ticket because my tire was not within a certain amount of inches from the curb …. brilliant!
My tips for you based on my misfortunes …. pay your tickets in a timely manner, and if you have the time – go to the City & County building and ask to see the “Referee” to dispute the tickets. They will usually give you some sort of break if you pay right then. If you DO have outstanding tickets – pay to park in private pay lots – you probably won’t get the boot there unless you don’t pay them either. Otherwise best of luck … they nickle and dime you to death, man!!!
