Get free bike parking from the city, if you ask nicely

We’ve got to hand it to the city: they’re pretty good about giving things to people. Trees, compost, and it turns out you can also bother the Department of Transportation for some bike parking. Which is good news for those of us who don’t want to hurt trees or have to buy extra long chains that get around light poles that are really thick.

If you know about a spot of city-owned land on a wide sidewalk, you can tell the city about it and have them inspect whether or not some bike parking will fit. If they say it will, the spot will be the proud new owner of some CityRacks. And best of all, it’s free as the air you breathe and probably just as full of heavy metals.

Now, to be upfront about it, the city isn’t necessarily going to just plant one of these bad boys in front of your apartment. After all, these aren’t for all-day parking, but for high-traffic areas that get a lot of short-term bike visitors. But, if you’ve got a favorite bar or restaurant and they’re in a business improvement district, or you and your neighbors have a civic organization and are good enough friends to work together for something, your request will probably be taken more seriously. So now’s the time to start selling your bar manager or apologize to the neighbors for that out of control party you had last year.

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