Pay to Park? Do You Know Who I am?

Since this is a blog about parking, I am sharing a story about people who think they are entitled to free parking. Howie Carr writes in the Boston Herald about a Massachusetts State Rep named Demetrius Ataslis (D-Hyannis) who recently got a ticket for refusing to pay for parking at a beach parking lot. He put his state rep business card on the dashboard of his Audi because he said he was short on cash that day. Carr takes him to task, with the headline ‘Pay to Park? do You Know Who I am?’

The rep said he was helping a friend with a problem with his boat. The news story in the Patriot Ledger said he explained that the girl at the parking lot was 16 years old, and had no idea who he was.’

“Since Atsalis does work the gate at his own private Hyannis parking lot, I asked him how often he himself gets the eternal “do-you-know-who-I-am?” question in a shameless ploy to beat the $15-a-day fee.

“Just last week,” he said. “This Bruin, a former Bruin, pulls up. He’s going over to Nantucket for the weekend, and he says, ‘Come on, gimme a break, times are tough.’ He was driving a Mercedes.”