Editor:
I was recently issued a parking permit because I have arthritis.
I know very personally how important those designated parking spaces are to me as I go through my daily life.
I very much appreciate that I have the convenience to park in a preferred location.
It spares me a great deal of pain some days.
This month, I was shopping in Fortune Center on the North Shore.
As I drove in, I managed to get the last handicapped parking space in front of the Dollarama store.
To my surprise, a black late-model Lincoln pickup was straddling two handicapped parking spaces and did not have a permit displayed.
I asked the manager of Dollarama if they could do something about the situation.
She tried calling the administration and security for the mall, but neither answered her call.
She suggested I call the RCMP non-emergency number, which I did. The lady I spoke to said to call the city’s bylaw-enforcement division.
I did and left a message and information about the truck with the lady who answered the phone.
While I was doing all that, the owner of the truck returned and began to walk into Dollarama, passing me by its entrance.
I asked him why he was taking two handicapped parking spaces when he didn’t even have a permit to use one parking space.
He told me to “f— off.”
He then returned to his truck, followed by two other people, very able-bodied and much younger than me.
I don’t believe for a moment any of them were entitled to a handicapped parking permit.
It seems we have a big problem here.
This is something I have observed before and I also see it in other places I visit.
We need to have a quick and easy way to deal with these parking violations.
These parking spaces are essential for many people.
No one should think they have the right to deny access to those who have permits.
Violators shouldn’t think they can get away with it.
So, be on the lookout for a black, near-new Lincoln pickup Mark LT with a Butler Motors sticker on the tailgate and a Butler Motors frame around the truck plate.
The self-important male driver sports a bluetooth in his ear.
He needs to get the message he is committing an offence under the Motor Vehicle Act of B.C., besides demonstrating his foul mouth and his arrogant disregard for those deserving of those designated parking spaces.
Claire Johnson
Kamloops
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