Evening out soured by parking ticket

Seeing the story in the Daily Herald about the Metropolis Theatre being on the verge of closing at the end of October made me think about how important it is to support local places in our community.

I bought four tickets to "Dial M For Murder" and had dinner at Peggy Kinnane's with another couple, spending over $200 for the evening out. Upon returning to the Metropolis parking garage I found a $25 ticket on my windshield. The infraction was "backing into a parking space".

Looking around I noticed at least three other cars that had backed into their space. For visibility it is easier to pull out forward than backing out but either way it is NOT something that should be ticketed and feels like an easy revenue grab by the police for unsuspecting visitors to the village of Arlington Heights.

I called the village and was emailed the ordinance which doesn't offer any explanation as to why it matters which direction you park your car only that it is an ordinance.

It would be wise for the village of Arlington Heights to give people a warning for a first offense rather than a ticket. In trying to support a local business my evening was soured by this experience. In the future I will take my dining and theater going revenue elsewhere. No wonder Arlington Heights needs to bail out this theater.

Renate Schulz

Elk Grove Village