We recently received a check from a Detroiter in a pre-printed envelope with our name and address. With the check was what appeared to be a City of Detroit parking ticket — until we looked closer. It’s deceptive. It’s from the “Cyclists of Detroit.”
Apparently this warning was placed on a vehicle that was parked in a bike lane. The instructions suggest send a donation to us, the Detroit Greenways Coalition.
We know nothing about this. We reached out to the city and they weren’t aware of this either.
While we certainly don’t want people parking vehicles in bike lanes, we also don’t want people being duped. We’re just not interested in taking donations in this manner. We will return 100% of the funds to this sender and any future ones.
Not only is this more work for us, it’s downright poor timing. There is strong push for re-evaluating and restricting bike lane development in Detroit, especially at City Council. There’s also a proposed ordinance to reduce parking fines for Detroit residents. We don’t want our name tied to this scam.
Parking enforcement issues can be legitimately submitted through the city’s Improve Detroit app or web page.