I am. It looks great. Do you have Xbox live gold?

COD is overrated in my opinion. There are a lot of better games coming out this year

Yeah I'm getting it on 360 assuming they haven't sold out by the time I get there.

a photochop I did a while back of how Phoenix would look if all the places were built that were proposed in 2006-07

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...a/phuture2.jpg

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...nixphuture.jpg

This drives me nuts too looking at the downtown of Lincoln, IL, a city of 14,000 people. Granted there isn't much going on, but if there was a street like this in downtown Phoenix, I feel it would be amazing.

With all the zero lot line buildings and a pedestrian friendly street, one could redevelop a lot of the old buildings and have cafes, bars, boutiques, etc in the lower levels and rent out the 2,3 apartments above each storefront. I love that town and it's too bad the economy was sucked dry by wal mart because this downtown used to be really vibrant, even more so than Phoenix's.

If the Jackson Street Entertainment District or something similar had a stock of buildings like this, it would be amazing! I just can't believe I'm comparing downtown phoenix to a downtown in rural Illinois in a farm town of 14,000.

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...untitled-2.jpg

Let's not forget Bisbee...and its population is only a little over 6,000.

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articl...ayden1116.html

Its really sad to see a racist, biggoted, backwards Klansman pass a great man like Senator Haydens record. Hayden was responsible probably more than any other single person for Arizonas growth and was instrumental in the hydro politics of the entire West. I read Visions in the Desert this summer and highly recommend it to anyone, its an easy read and will really make you appreciate how hard he worked for AZ and also make you realize how useless McCain and Kyl are.

Phoenix area legal experts (I know there at least a couple members on here who are or have been in law school) I have a question for you.

I live in an apartment complex with assigned parking spaces. I pay for my parking space with my rent, the space number is on my lease. I have an end space, which is nice because it's wider, so I can park my motorcycle and my fiance can park her car in the same assigned parking space.

However, probably because it's an end space and my fiance and I both work late. Douchebags keep parking in my space :hell: :hell: :hell: , sometimes overnight. I don't get home until the office is closed, so I have to find somewhere else to park, which is infurriating to no end. It's even mroe infuriating when I get home, park my motorcycle, and some douchebag parks in the space with me... with my motorcycle already in the space. WTF is wrong with you? :hell: :hell: :hell:

I tried just calling the number for the towing company myself (it's posted all over the space, right next to the sign that says reserved), but they wouldn't do anything about it unless the office called them. This leads to 2 questions that I would like legal advice on.

1) Why can't I call the towing company myself? I pay for that space every month, I own that space just like I own my apartment. If someone broke into my apartment I'd call the cops, I wouldn't call the office and have them call the cops. Why doesn't the same principle apply to my parking space? Could I call the cops and have them write a parking ticket for the person in my space?

2) Possibly more importantly, if I take a tire iron and beat the holy living shit out of the car in my space, would I be on the hook for vandalism? I know there are all sorts of laws in Arizona saying that if someone breaks into my apartment I can use force with pretty much no provocation to remove them, right? Does that same principle apply to a car in my parking space... an extension of my apartment? What if I shoot the car? I'm allowed to shoot an intruder, right? Am I allowed to shoot the intruding car instead?

2B) If the gun's ok but the tire iron isn't (who knows, this is a gun happy state), I don't own a gun, anyone want to lend me one? :D

^You could both inform the office and also leave a note on the car? Just a thought...

1) Why can't I call the towing company myself? I pay for that space every month, I own that space just like I own my apartment. If someone broke into my apartment I'd call the cops, I wouldn't call the office and have them call the cops. Why doesn't the same principle apply to my parking space? Could I call the cops and have them write a parking ticket for the person in my space?



If you infact live in an apartment, then you do not own it, and your ownership wouldn't translate to a parking space anyhow. The space is owned by the HOA or management company and you are entitled to the rights to it.

The reason they want you to call the office and recieve verification is because if they didn't require it, any schmuck could call and say "thats my parking space, tow the car in it!!" The towing company doesn't want the liability of taking a car which they legally had now grounds to take. I've been through the same situation 100 times in my complex.

2) Possibly more importantly, if I take a tire iron and beat the holy living shit out of the car in my space, would I be on the hook for vandalism? I know there are all sorts of laws in Arizona saying that if someone breaks into my apartment I can use force with pretty much no provocation to remove them, right? Does that same principle apply to a car in my parking space... an extension of my apartment? What if I shoot the car? I'm allowed to shoot an intruder, right? Am I allowed to shoot the intruding car instead?

Absolutely you'd be on the hook for vandalism. You don't OWN the parking space. It is not DEEDED to you, and even if it were, it's not your home. Same principle applies to land you own or your front yard. You can threaten, but not use deadly force to make someone leave your property, if it is rightfully yours. A parking spot in this case is probably not legally yours. And FYI, you're not always allowed to just shoot someone because they came in your house. In my 100+ hours of firearm law firearm training, I've heard many horror stories about this. If someone were to come in your house and you just shot them, you'd have a hard time selling that as well as if someone came in your house, and you said you were going to shoot, and then did.

2B) If the gun's ok but the tire iron isn't (who knows, this is a gun happy state), I don't own a gun, anyone want to lend me one?
I know you're speaking in jest, but this is an easily rectifiable situation. Parking your bike in the middle of the space ensures that someone cannot occupy it.

If you're like most people, you wedge it up to the front of the space. Your best option at this point is to notify your apartment manager (they should be on site) or your HOA manager (if you actually live in a condo... I'm confused about this because you mention ownership and apartment in the same sentence.) They will either ignore you or handle it. My HOA gave me a written letter stating that my parking space belongs to my unit, and anytime someone parks in it, I can call towing.

There are easier ways to handle this than to simply bash a car with a tire iron and cause more problems than you already have.

No, any schmuck couldn't call and say "that's my parking space." The space number is on my lease right next to my apartment number. It wouldn't be that hard for them to send a tow truck, and when it gets here I can show them my paperwork showing that the space is assigned to me.

I wedge it up at the front of the space so my fiance can park her car next to me. I shouldn't need to park in the middle of the space and then get out of bed later (I work early in the morning, she works late at night at the moment... it's lame) to move the bike and allow her to park in the space.

I tried going to the apartment manager (apartment, not condo, "own" was the wrong word), they gave me option A and said too bad.

Sure, but none of them are nearly as satisfying :D

I wouldn't actually, mostly because I don't want them to retaliate in kind, but it's definitely fun to think about :notacrook:

I told you what you legally have grounds to do and you are seeming kind of argumentative about it????

Another thing you can do is leave a note on the car explaining this is your space and they shouldn't park in it anymore. You can also teach your girlfriend to move your bike around. I taught mine incase it should ever come up. She has trouble with the heavier one, but she can move my sport bike around just fine.

Is it the same car every time? How big is your complex? I have about 170 units where I live and can tell you who drives most cars in the lot. You should be able to track it down that way. If it's different vehicles then I think you should be a little firmer with management.

Which community if I may ask?

oh, and follow this thread as it goes.... I posted it on one of the most resourceful sites on the net...

http://forums.vwvortex.com/zerothrea...92570#62092570


oh, and um, don't ask why my name on that site is a 16 year old kid named kenny that goes to desert mountain high school.... I'll just say if it said john and had my real info, the name would be banned by now.

They aren't as tolerant of my douchebaggetry as this site.

I'm not argumentative I'm annoyed (with the system, not you). Your options, while probably correct, ummm... blow. It's my spot, it's on my lease, I have the paperwork. I shouldn't have to go through the office or park my motorcycle inconveniently to defend it. If someone decided to camp out in my apartment I could call the cops and show them the lease with my name and the apartment number. I don't understand why the same principle doesn't apply to the parking space also on the same lease.

I'm not sure how many units are in my complex... somewhere in the neighborhood of 170 is probably accurate. I don't know any of the cars except those that park in my area though. If it were the same car every time I'd probably be more committed to figuring out who's it was, but it's typically a different car every time. Once or twice a week since April. I've seen one pull in once or twice and told them to fuck off, but it only stops that one vehicle that one time.

It's a complex called "the enclave" http://www.equityapartments.com/broc...09 12:00:00 AM. This is not a hit piece on the apartment complex, by the way. I actually love every other aspect of the community, which is why this issue is so grating. My parking space was regularly abused at my previous apartment complex, but I had other issues with the apartment complex, so I just moved. I actually like this one, so I don't want to move, I just don't want people parking in my space :hell:

Find a pack of the biggest blank shipping labels you can (like 8.5" by 5.5"), print out a tow notice on them (write it like some ambiguous form letter that the apartment manager can slap on any mis-parked car, not a "This is my parking space!" notice that clearly came from you), and apply one directly to the driver's door window. Apply it to the glass, not a painted surface. It won't damage anything, but it's kind of a 5-minute nuisance to remove.

I don't think most people would go to the manager's office and try to follow up on it, saying "Hey, I parked in this spot that wasn't mine, but what the fuck?"

Now that's a suggestion I like. It'll satisfy my urge for vandalism without actually being vandalism.

:tup:

but now how do we know that you're not really a 16 year old kid named Kenny and this is the site you'er faking your information on? I like how you add to the confusion by writing "im 16 and i cant own a gun" over there and "In my 100+ hours of firearm law firearm training" over here.

I like Nick's idea, but in honesty, I wouldn't want to be messing with anyone's car even with a sticker. I would hate to be seen and then they retaliate by fucking with your bike which would be very easy.

Why not just call someone at Equity, not some douchebag bitch in the rental office, but someone who actually has some authority. Demand they discount your rent until they can figure out how to keep your parking space yours. Tell them since you are paying for it, you expect it to be available. If they aren't going to take the steps to make it available, then you don't want to pay for it and you want $50 a month off your rent (covers the parking space.)

I have Tekken 6! Bob and Miguel are too good.

• Video Link
• Video Link

So like I posted in the joke thread I was telling jokes at the Sangria Luxe Lounge last night which is a place worth going if only for the gorgeous wait staff. But it was in an interesting development called The Citadelle Plaza, has anyone been there? Its sort of like a mini CityNorth or Westgate. Its interesting because its not really a strip center in the traditional sense but its not really a fully fleshed out new urbanist center either. Its turned in on itself with 'city streets' bisecting it, diagonal on street parking and everything is two stories. However those no residential component and due to the economy most of the shops are dead right now. Also theres no real anchor (a movie theater wouldve been ideal, perhaps even an art house since there's none on the West side) so it seemed kinda dead last night. But its worth checking out from an urbanism nerd stand point, the whole thing seems like someone read half of a James Howard Kunstler book, got really excited and went out and did it with out reading the rest.

what in the hell are you talking about?

Im not sure what you're confused about. Are you unfamiliar with James Howard Kunstler or New Urbanism? Or unfamiliar with this development or...? I can clarify if I know what you're confused about.

EDIT: VV Im running to dinner now, but Ill explain later, sorry.

I am unfamiliar with James Howard Kunstler, New Urbanism, AND that development.

You said it all like it was known like Wal Mart.

I know exactly what you're talking about...it's on "my side" of town. I remember when they built it a couple years back and remember being impressed with the design and how there is minimal setback on some of the buildings, especially for this part of town.

New Urbanism is an urban design movement, which promotes walkable neighborhoods that contain a range of housing and job types. It arose in the United States in the early 1980s and continues to reform many aspects of real estate development and urban planning.

It was pioneered by people like Andres Duany and Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk in Miami and you can see examples of it locally in places like Agritopia, Verrado, and to some degree City Scape. Its using traditional city building techniques like minimal set backs, alleys, etc to create walkable area.

James Howard Kunstler is sort of the John the Baptist of New Urbanism, he didn't come up with it, but he writes books about it and spreads the word. His books like "The Geography of Nowhere" are pretty good and interesting but unfortunately like a lot of Urban enthusiasts he falls prety to a lot of crack pot notions. Like that the physical form of our buildings will effect things dramatically like teenage delinquency, family togetherness, et al. He's also obsessed with things like "peak oil" and constantly foretelling of the end of it all (or darn near it) and generally being proven wrong.

But he is a gifted and entertaining speaker as you can see here.

I was testing a new lens tonight and decided to post these for you all.

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...DSC_0004-3.jpg

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...DSC_0014-2.jpg

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...DSC_0027-1.jpg

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...DSC_0038-1.jpg

I really like that 2nd one. If only there were people walking down Van Buren it would look really urban and awesome.

Agreed, I like this one. A unique urban vantage in this city rarely photographed, coupled with the passing nighttime train, etc. Though you know it is, for a split second, it really doesn't read as a location in Phoenix.

This person was interesting

http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d6...a/DSC_0128.jpg

/\ haha! I had some crazy lady pushing a petition on legalizing medical marijuana on me on friday night while out at Amsterdam..

I think someone posted a map of the population density distribution for metro phoenix at one point. Can someone repost that, or does anyone have a map that shows the pop density distribution for the city?

While we're asking for info...

does anyone know where one could find (sourced) info on how much private development (in dollars) has happened with a mile or so of the LRT since its announcement? Or maybe since its come online? But the former seems more valid. For instance CityScape was touted as a $900M project, but obviously thats been way scaled back, I wonder what its value is now ($400M maybe?).

Then on top of that I guess there's the public development stuff that one could argue may or may not have happened with out LRT (ASU downtown, Convention Center, etc)...or wouldve happened less successfully anyway.

medical marijuana ftw.

there are hundreds of dispensaries up around denver now. :yes:

Why go all the way to Denver when one could easily drive to CA. Their laws have pretty much decriminalized it all together.

Has anyone actually figured out what the draw is to Pizzeria Bianco? I'd much rather go to Cibo. The pizza really isn't that great at Biancos (and yes I do know it was rated #1 a few years back, bla bla bla) At Bianco, as soon as you get in, they're trying to get you out to turn the tables.

true.

it's pretty much the same here at this point, just less established.

He lives in denver :)

I personally don't get why they don't legalize pot everywhere.. I don't smoke pot, but seriously what is the big deal about it? Imagine the tax revenue it could generate! It would get rid of a big black market. People could open "bars" that cater specifically to pot. Great for entrepreneurs. And put the same laws on pot that there are on alcohol. put an age limit on it and driving restrictions... seems like a no brainer to me.

legalize, tax, ???, profit!

Move to a house. Problem solved.

True, but he's posting on a Phoenix forum.

i was bored.

Don't get me wrong, you're always welcome here. I'd like to see more outsiders read up and post things going on in Phoenix. :cheers:

:previous: I wouldn't, especially if their from Utah. Those people kind of creep me out. They have small hands and smell like cabage.

First of all GO CARDS!!! Anyone watching this shit? Fuck you brett favre u fag!!

Haha im drunk but anyway they are showing a lot of shots of downtown and the *light* from cityscape is on so they are probably live or at least in the past 4 days. Anyway lots of aerial shots and some over I-10 looking SW.

What the hell are the Diamondbacks doing? Edwin Jackson & Ian Kennedy? And you're going to give up one of the most live young arms in the game (Scherzer) to get them? Let's hope this deal doesn't get done...

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4725108

It already did.

Woohoo! I'm finally employed, after six months of pain!

As of today, my long period of pain and deprivation is over. I finally got the call to duty about 10 am this morning. You are looking at the new Director of the Lawyer Referral Service of the Maricopa County Bar Association. Woohoo! :)

I start Friday, and the benefits kick in on January 1. Thankfully, this came just in the nick of time, because I was just about out of money and January was looking really grim.

I must thank the law school, particularly retired judge Penny Willrich and my first law school professor. She was the first black female judge in Maricopa County. It was her glowing recommendation of me for the position that allowed me to obtain it in the first place.

--don

congratulations.

Same word of adivce I've been giving to everyone... don't fuck it up because there are a thousand other people in line for your job who will do it cheaper.

Just thought I'd throw this out there...a few of our friends from other sites like Yelp and Twitter are getting together next week on Thursday night for Happy Hour at The District to play board games. Don't know if any of you guys are into them or are looking for a social activity but I thought I'd offer it up. I have a wicked transit planning game called Cable Car that some of your may like. http://www.yelp.com/events/phoenix-u...ght-happy-hour

EDIT: URL fixed. thx Hoover