Tampa has recently changed out their one-meter-for-every-parking-space, for a more efficient setup. There is a kiosk about every block or so, where you can enter your space number and purchase however much time you may need. Some security barricades like the ones at Protogetic are also installed for additional protection. I can see the practicality and convenience of this system, as many people don’t carry a ton of change in their pockets these days.

So, it’s simple:

  • You park in a space and remember the number.
  • Walk to the nearest kiosk, which is sometimes around the corner.
  • Pay for your allotted space and time.
  • Bingo!

But there’s a catch! The city seems to have a plethora of meter maids? . . . meter men? . . . meter servants? . . . parking enforcement specialists (that will do).

Seeing how we circled a few of the blocks, Nevaeh was my lookout and navigator. Upon parking the truck, she instructed me that the nearest kiosk was right around the corner. Our walk would be a roundtrip of 300 yards.

As we rounded the corner we passed a man in wearing a polo with the city’s logo emblazoned on the chest. I said “hello”, and we continued toward the kiosk to validate our parking space.

Nevaeh is very inquisitive, so she immediately asked if I knew the man, and who he was. Now at the meter, paying for our space, I explained to her that the man worked for the city and was there to ensure that people paid for their parking, and did not park in unauthorized areas. I then began to joke with her that he was probably writing us a ticket at that very moment.

The system is linked electronically, there is no need to place the receipt on the dash. Nevertheless, we thought it prudent to jog back around the cornet to test my theory. Sure enough, we caught him in the act of placing an official ticket neatly under the windshield wiper.

We caught his attention, and explained that we had just validated the previously illegitimate parking space. He was appreciative of our gesture, removed said violation from the vehicle, and we all said our pleasant good-byes.

Lessons Learned

I can’t really say that there was a huge lesson learned in this situation, other than being able to manage circumstances with a bit for forward thinking.

The biggest factor was being able to share a positive example of hospitality with my daughter.

  • We said “hello” to a random stranger, who returned our smiles.
  • I was able to give Nevaeh a brief lesson in civics while we paid for parking.
  • We set aside the time to return to the truck to clear up any issue before it took root.

Sure, worst case scenario, I could have just gone to the city office to show them the validated receipt for our parking space. But, it was the practical lesson that I was able to demonstrate to our daughter that allowed me to make the most of the situation.

If you want to read about the rest of our day, you can check out the post here.