Anti-RV "No Overnight Parking" bill in Maine Legislature

[Ryan Wright]

>> Within a mile there were 3 RV parks & 2 RV dealerships and this stupid idiot
was squatting
>> on the Walmart property for 2 days. It's idiots like this which provoke
legislation

Isn't that decision up to Wal-Mart, though? I mean, really - if
Wal-Mart doesn't want people squatting in their parking lot, then it's
up to Wal-Mart to ask them to leave. What business do the local
politicians have in telling private property owners who can and can't
park in their parking lots and for what length of time?

Fact is, this is a property rights issue. If the city wants to tell
RVers they can't park on city property, that's their business, but
whether I park and camp at Wal-Mart is between me and Wal-Mart.

In the case above, if the manager wanted the guy to leave, he should
have asked the guy to leave. Period. Personally, if I were the
manager, as long as the guy was in the far corner of my parking lot
not taking up spaces used by other customers, I'd be happy to have his
business. I'm sure he bought food & supplies from the store while he
was there.

>> The slobs who dump their tanks and refuse in the parking lots and abuse the
system
>> are to blame.

I'm with Bruce on this. Has anyone here actually seen this happen? I'd
be really surprised if anyone here has actually seen someone
intentionally dump their holding tanks all over the asphalt in a
parking lot. I'd imagine such a thing is incredibly rare, if it
happens at all.

As for me: We boondock constantly. That's half the reason I bought a
Wanderlodge - the extreme range and boondocking potential provided by
the large fuel, water & holding tanks. We'll roll into a Wal-Mart
parking lot or truck stop, have dinner, sleep, have breakfast and get
on the road. It's fast and easy - I don't really like campgrounds and
reservations and all that, I prefer to just sleep when I get tired. We
rarely stay anywhere more than 10-12 hours, often it's less than 8,
and we always buy something from the store while we're there (usually
groceries).

I don't look up the city ordinances for every city we stop in and I'm
not going to. If a cop knocks on my door and asks me to leave, I will
gladly move on. If he issues me a ticket, I'll just drop it in the
shredder when I get home. Unless there are clearly posted signs, I'm
not going to pay some city's parking extortion fee.

These things don't seem to be enforced much, anyway. The city next to
mine passed a similar law and posted signs all over the Wal-Mart
parking lot, yet there are multiple RVs camping there every time I
drive past.

-Ryan
'86 PT-40 8V92


On Sat, May 9, 2009 at 7:58 AM, birdshill123 wrote:
>
>
> Michael Brody:
>
> This is a hot button topic. Whenever it is being discusses people post about
> sewage being dumped. I would like to hear from others who have actually seen
> this happen. More of an urban legend than anything else. This type of
> legislation is usually pushed by some small minded CG owner. Of course they
> are suffering in this economy but so is everyone else. As others have
> stated: Try going into a CG at 10 p.m. The gates may be locked. You have to
> find your own space and disturb everyone else. Overnighting at a Wal mart or
> a "J" is not hurting these CG owners. Wal Mart users are not wanting a CG ,
> just a place to park overnight. Yes there are abusers but they remain a
> minority. The legislation is poorly written and could address the problem
> with some sort of time limit. I hope that everyone e mails that legislator
> and if the bill is passed we should all avoid Maine . Jurisdictions that
> have pased similar legislation have either suffered a loss of tourism or
> have rescinded the regs. There are plenty of other states who welcome us!!!
>
> Bruce
>
> 1988 FC35
>
>