Broken ticket machine leads to standoff

Police intervene in the recent standoff between Yaelburton Steinberg and Alexis Nihon parking lot staff.
Published on June 11, 2011
Published on June 11, 2011
Elisabeth Faure
Police called in to settle Alexis Nihon parking dispute
For Yaelburton Steinberg and his girlfriend, a recent night out turned into a nightmare at the Alexis Nihon parking lot. Steinberg claims his car was held hostage for three hours — all because of a broken ticket machine.
Topics :
Alexis Nihon , Canadian Tire , Ford Escape
“My girlfriend and I left work around 5:30,” says Steinberg. Both work across the street. They had dinner reservations and decided to park in the Alexis Nihon lot to save time. “That was our first mistake,” says Steinberg.
The following is Steinberg’s version of events.
He says the ticket machine at the parking lot entrance was broken. Unable to get a ticket, Steinberg tried pressing the “call” button, and got no response. There was no attendant in the parking lot booth, and a “back in five minutes” sign was in the window. The bar to enter the parking lot was raised, so Steinberg and his girlfriend drove up into the lot and parked.
Alexis Nihon policy is shoppers spending $30 or more get two hours of free parking. Steinberg made a $39.99 purchase at Canadian Tire. He returned to his car with his girlfriend and drove towards the parking lot exit.
The attendant had returned to the booth. Steinberg explained why he didn’t have a ticket, and showed his receipt to the attendant. The attendant said Steinberg was required to pay a $20 “lost ticket” fee. “I didn’t feel he was acting professionally,” Steinberg says.
The attendant refused to raise the exit bar, and a standoff ensued.
Mall security arrived, and told Steinberg to pay the $20. He refused, and the police were called. “We knew it would take a long time for the police to arrive, as they have real emergencies to deal with,” says Steinberg.
The pair waited in the parking lot for three hours until police arrived. During that time, Steinberg says he received dirty looks from other cars coming in and out of the lot. “It was embarrassing, as I have never been arrested or been thought of as the criminal type,” says Steinberg, noting he was wearing dress pants and Prada shoes. “I thought to myself, ‘Do I look that dishonest sitting in a new Ford Escape?’” he says.
While waiting for the police, Steinberg claims he observed the attendant refusing to act when a mall-goer told him there was a fire in the building, and allowing a woman to leave the lot without paying because she had changed her mind about making a purchase.

Mall administration offers to refund $5.25
When the cops showed up, the attendant asked them to arrest Steinberg. The police instead told the attendant to let Steinberg exit the lot. But the attendant insisted Steinberg pay the nightly rate of $5.25 (by now it was after 9 p.m.). Steinberg reluctantly agreed, and drove away.
Gaétan Prudhomme, the Alexis Nihon’s General Manager of Operations, spoke to Steinberg by phone on June 7 and offered his apologies. Steinberg says Prudhomme offered him a refund on the $5.25 parking fee, and said he would put a note in the parking lot attendant’s file.
That’s not enough, says Steinberg. “I told him it was not worth it for me to go collect $5.25,” he says, adding if one of his clients had a similar complaint, he would have offered them a gift card. Overall, Steinberg says the “humiliation and unprofessionalism” behind the whole situation continues to bother him. He says he will still shop at Alexis Nihon — but only because he works across the street.