Not my Prius

Dear Target Parking Planning Person,

I have been a loyal customer of the Target Franschise for several years now. I like the stuff you have. I like the prices I pay for it.

In fact, I like it enough that over the last 6 months, while your store has been under constant and unrelenting construction, I have continued my patronage even when I have absolutely no idea where the Ladies Speedstick is going to be from day to day. In fact, how the hell do you move it so often? It's like magic and a never ending practical joke all rolled in to one! And, don't your employees finally throw their hands up and say, "enough already!! I'm not going to move it ANY MORE!!" ? It's like a puzzle I need to solve every week while trying to get a great deal on Vitamin Water.

But, I now I have a problem. You've repainted the parking lot spaces. And, while we are in San Francisco - - where a lot of ecologically minded people like to putt around in their hybrid Prius' and Hondas - it might come as a shocker that - well, not everyone here drives an economy sized car. This might have been a good thing to check out. Since now the entire load of parking spaces front of the store entrance are now marked "Economy." 10-12 rows across. 30 spaces deep. You want non-economy parking? Try those closer to Chipotle. I will speculate that someone mis-read the parking lot analysis report.

Yesterday I noted that the preponderence of vehicles parked in these spaces were not, in fact, economy cars at all. Most of them? SUVs. Taking up 1.5 parking places and throwing the whole system in to pandemonium. A couple of prius' and mini's were there - but mostly they were being crowded out by what regular folk drive. Regular sized cars or bigger.

And, no - if you're hoping that the wee tiny spaces will provide some incentive for people to downsize to wee tiny cars - you might be underestimating the power of Target to influence people outside of what you sell in your stores. Or is there a master plan for Target to roll out it's new Up&Up hybrid economy vehicle??

Has it occurred to you that if you down size the parking spaces and your consumers downsize their cars to fit in to them, it is possible they will also down size the amount of shopping that they do in your establishment? Where, in a Mini, do you think Mom's going to stash her 1,000 roll package of Charmin?

And no - if you were hoping providing spaces for folks to park their super-sized cars park further away would result in them actually using them - you'd be wrong. They don't care. They're going to squeeze that Escalade in to the closest space to the front door as they can. They will gleefully open their gargantuan doors right smack into those little economy guys. It's a Ding City free-for-all.

Please re-pave and re-paint.

Yours truly,

A San Francisco Station Wagon Owner