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July 8, 2009
Bike Parking Woes Continue
We know you've been hanging on the edge of your seat wondering what happened with our bicycle rack saga on Front Street in Dumbo. As you may recall, for several weeks, our preferred spot to lock up our bike near our office had been taken by what appeared to be an abandoned bike; a few days after our post, the bike mysteriously disappeared. Smooth sailing? Not exactly. When we rolled up yesterday, Starbucks' garbage had taken over, making bicycle parking if not impossible then certainly rather unappetizing.
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Comments
Mr. B, I think you have "grounds" for a complaint to Starbucks management.
Posted by: Biff Champion at July 8, 2009 10:49 AM
..but the complaint will need to percolate through the bureaucracy
Posted by: sam at July 8, 2009 10:54 AM
If Mr. B stirs the pot, I see a big confrontation brewing.
Posted by: Biff Champion at July 8, 2009 11:01 AM
as a matter of 'course', you guys really need to 'filter' your comments before you 'espresso' yourselves, youre all full of 'beans'.
can i booo myself?
seriously though i wonder if there's some ordinance about not obstructing bike racks.
Posted by: goldie at July 8, 2009 11:02 AM
Mr B. should be ticketed for illegally locking his bike to a garbage-buttress.
Posted by: dittoburg at July 8, 2009 11:04 AM
Garbage in, garbage out.
Posted by: daveinbedstuy at July 8, 2009 11:08 AM
honestly tho, you could still fit a bike on the rack. the trash isnt exactly covering the whole thing. i think a lot of times bikers (i refuse to say cyclists) just refuse to wanna share public space, be it pedestrians, cars, buses, spaceships, strollers, etc. it's always ME ME ME ME ME ME!
*rob*
Posted by: PitbullNYC at July 8, 2009 11:08 AM
You could probably still lock it there without getting dirty - but the problem is when the sanitation professionals come to take those trash bags away, chances are they will mess up your vintage schwinn.
Posted by: dirty_hipster at July 8, 2009 11:16 AM
i think a lot of times bikers (i refuse to say cyclists) just refuse to wanna share public space, be it pedestrians, cars, buses, spaceships, strollers, etc. it's always ME ME ME ME ME ME!
*rob*
Posted by: PitbullNYC at July 8, 2009 11:08 AM
QOTD
Posted by: daveinbedstuy at July 8, 2009 11:18 AM
For crying out loud - tie a beagle to the post and she will make short work of those sissy bags. GO and tell the starbucks mananagment that you are calling the po po if it happens again - of course dont call the po po because they hate cyclists - I call them cyclists because that is what they are, as bikers ride motorcycles which dont normally need to be tied down. And as long as cars/buses can kill cyclists I am all for me me me. If you are parking your stroller where bikes go you have real problems. At least remove the baby.
Posted by: Ljubitca at July 8, 2009 11:33 AM
the zaytoon's down the block from me has bike delivery guys, so of course it assiduously avoids putting its trash anywhere near the bike racks. instead, it packs all of its nasty trash up and around a street tree, so that stinky garbage grease and all manner of disgusting stuff leaks all over the trunk and into the tree pit. where it stays, attracting flies, vermin, dog crap, etc. so be careful what you wish for.
Posted by: i disagree at July 8, 2009 11:34 AM
If Mr. Brownstoner had ventured inside of the Starbucks and asked politely about the garbage bags all around the bike rack, perhaps we'd know why the garbage was placed in that exact spot. He might have even asked about the bike.
Posted by: East New York at July 8, 2009 11:51 AM
Biff, are you in advertising? You write good copy.
..stir the pot, storm brewing, that's good stuff, OK maybe more for children's TV than advertising, but nonetheless.
Posted by: sam at July 8, 2009 12:10 PM
Based on the reflection in Starbuck's window, there's a nice tree across the street that looks just the right diameter to chain a bike to.
Seriously, when did bikes start needing dedicated parking racks? The city is full of street signs, parking meters, fences, and many other things you can chain a bike to.
Posted by: Sparafucile at July 8, 2009 12:10 PM
"Biff, are you in advertising? You write good copy."
No, I'm a frayed knot. But I do write good copy, and, according to a Filipino friend of mine, I brew good coppee.
Posted by: Biff Champion at July 8, 2009 12:24 PM
> If Mr. Brownstoner had ventured inside of the Starbucks...
Sounds like he was too busy hanging out at the whine bar.
Posted by: DitmasSnark at July 8, 2009 12:29 PM
Upstaged by Snark yet again. Good thing I'm used to it.
Posted by: Biff Champion at July 8, 2009 12:31 PM
When I first read the tagline, I thought I was reading The Onion.
This can't be for real.
What ENY said.
Posted by: 11217 at July 8, 2009 12:35 PM
*rob* said, "i think a lot of times bikers (i refuse to say cyclists) just refuse to wanna share public space, be it pedestrians, cars, buses, spaceships, strollers, etc. it's always ME ME ME ME ME ME!"
yeah, this is true often enough. But the dude just wants to park his bike. Nothing wrong with that.
I am curious, Mr. B, DID you at least go in and ask them about the placement of the garbage? Seems like a reasonable thing to do. The next best thing to do would be to toss the trash bags through the doorway and into the Starbucks.
Posted by: dwarbi at July 8, 2009 12:43 PM
Was there a disruption in trash pickup due to the holiday weekend? The Starbucks near my office also had an inordinate amount of trash in front of it yesterday.
Too bad NYC doesn't have alleys like Chicago for trash pick up.
Posted by: dirty_hipster at July 8, 2009 12:50 PM
i was just busting on him dwarbi.. perhaps i should insist on designated parking lot for my mini barbie motorized cruiser? (uh i dont really have one of those ;))
*rob*
Posted by: PitbullNYC at July 8, 2009 12:50 PM
grody to the max dipster, who wants trash in their alley!/ gack. (i guess i only feel this way cuz my bedroom on ground level faces an alley). btw, i LOVE alleyways!
*rob*
Posted by: PitbullNYC at July 8, 2009 12:59 PM
sam- I suggest we hold a dinner and roast biff.
Posted by: bxgrl at July 8, 2009 1:14 PM
Biff. It's what's for dinner.
Posted by: DitmasSnark at July 8, 2009 1:34 PM
To echo what some others have said, there's too much "whine" factor in this posting. Not that he's wrong -- bikers/cyclists (I am a serious urban cyclist myself) need access to bike racks. But, c'mon -- "man up", heft those bags out tha way yourself, and get on with your life, tough guy.
Posted by: shovel lover at July 8, 2009 1:44 PM
Does anyone else think that bicyclists are quickly developing the same sense of entitlement that drivers have with their cars?
Posted by: slick at July 8, 2009 1:44 PM
@slick
gee, that would be a shocking development. add pedestrians to that list too.
Posted by: BGGB at July 8, 2009 1:58 PM
i thought Mr B had a banana seat cruiser with plastic tassels on the handle bars, not a vintage schwinn?
Posted by: bodhi_brooklyn at July 8, 2009 3:07 PM
"Does anyone else think that bicyclists are quickly developing the same sense of entitlement that drivers have with their cars?"
No, I don't think cyclists expecting cycling racks to be unobstructed and available for use is a sign of entitlement whatsoever.
Posted by: Biff Champion at July 8, 2009 3:22 PM
Yup Biff
If there was a mountain of garbage in a street parking space people would be even more up in arms.
Posted by: dirty_hipster at July 8, 2009 3:34 PM
Or you could just move the trash, and not blog about how upsetting a few trash bags are.
Posted by: emulcifier at July 8, 2009 4:24 PM
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