Cycling Tips & Stories

Today's Pitch Weekly has encapsulated the typical bicyclist's dilemma:

Rita is the type of customer that Town Center Plaza executives must salivate over. She's a 50-something grandmother who lives in an upscale subdivision in Leawood. Her husband is a well-known business owner, so she has plenty of money to spend at the development's trendy retailers. She's on a first-name basis with the clerks at Williams-Sonoma — but she doesn't want her full name used in the telling of this tale, for fear of looking like an activist. . . .

Rita, you see, made the fatal mistake of thinking she could actually ride her bicycle somewhere in the state of Missouri.

When she got there, she found out they didn't want her or her bike, and they hadn't even thought of installing bicycle racks.

Remember that the average bicycle rack holds 4-6 bikes and costs a whopping couple hundred dollars.

The average parking spot costs $10,000 and up.

So what's an eco-friendly commuter to do? The Department of Burnt Ends called the administrative office, posing as a cyclist trying to figure out where to park a bike while spending some bucks. Perhaps schooled by Schroeder since Rita's original call, the woman who answered didn't ban us from the premises. But she wasn't very helpful, either.

"I don't have any recommendations," she said.

As for Rita. she's recommending that eco-friendly shoppers take their bikes — and bucks — elsewhere. This grandma found out that Town Center isn't about the eco-friendly commuter.

Businesses and commercial centers in most civilized parts of the world are required to provide bicycle parking for customers, just as they are required to provide vehicle parking, ADA compliant sidewalks, and all the rest.

So we would recommend three steps:

• Ask for the accommodations you need. Bike racks are not unreasonably expensive.
  
• Work with your local government to require bicycle parking.
  
• When businesses don't cooperate, take your business elsewhere and don't be afraid to let them know you are doing it and why.

There are a million adults--and another million under age 18--who regularly bicycle in Missouri.

And there is a lot of strength in numbers when we speak up.

Addendum 9/27/2007: Town Center Plaza responds--and is considering bike racks

Thank you for your e-mail and for giving us the opportunity to give you accurate information. Actually no, it is not true that Town Center Plaza does not allow bicycles.

I must admit the management team at the center was surprised by both the direction and the tone of the article. Town Center Plaza welcomes our cyclist community, and Mr. Schroeder (the DDR spokesperson quoted in the article) is an avid cyclist himself. In fact, a local cyclist group meets here weekly ending their ride at Panera Bread for refreshments. One part of the article is correct. We have not had any requests for bike racks and as such it had not been entertained until recently.

In June of this year, Town Center Plaza began extensive investigation into a "Green" initiative directed toward doing our part for the good of the whole. The first and most immediate change you will see is the replacement of the old incandescent lighting formerly used in our holiday decor with new energy efficient LED bulbs. In addition, we are currently investigating the introduction of Hybrid vehicles for use by our operations team. Other initiatives will include more efficient use of HVAC at the center, education of our merchants, lighting timer settings, and in general a review of how we are conducting day-to-day business as it relates to this subject. Recently, I attended a seminar hosted by KCP&L regarding energy efficiency and Town Center Plaza has on- site meetings scheduled with their engineering team for assistance in our programs. This process has been "in-play" for several months and will be a substantial undertaking in 2008. One month ago, our General Manager wrote an article in our Merchant Newsletter titled "Green Saves Green," encouraging our retailers not to keep their doors open during the summer months while their air conditioners are running.

Both the local and corporate management group think the addition of bike racks is a great idea and based on your request, will be investigated. Town Center Plaza is a part of the community it serves and within the boundaries of our legal agreements, protecting our customers, merchants, and the property, fully embraces the needs of that group. Cyclists, like all Town Center Plaza customers are welcome at the center and where opportunities are presented that benefit that group every consideration will be given toward their needs.

Thank you again for your e-mail. Please don't hesitate to contact me if I can be of further assistance.

Regards,

Kristy L. Hooper, CMD
Director of Marketing
Town Center Plaza/Ward Parkway Center
p: 913.498.1111
f: 913.469.1445
www.TownCenterPlaza.com
khooper@ddr.com

permanent link to article: "Lack of bike racks = good-bye to customers"
posted by Brent Hugh at 9/26/2007 09:50:00 PM |comment on this article