On Saturday, July 10, the U.S. Women’s Triathlon Series was conducting orientation/registration for the participants in the follow day’s triathlon. The area along 312th Street in front of Steel Lake Park is a no-parking zone, but due to the limited parking at the park, some event participants parked along 312th Street anyway. As more event participants arrived later in the day, upon seeing the line of cars parked along 312th, it appeared to them that it was a legitimate place to park.

However, when returning to their cars later in the afternoon, all cars had received a $20 ticket.

I am in full support of enforcing the laws and rules of the city, and I applaud the service that the fine people of the police department provide. However, I take exception with the enforcement in this instance. Rather than target people who have traveled to the city to spend time and money in our hotels, restaurants and shops — a better approach would have been to go to the event staff and ask them to make an announcement to the participants that they needed to move their vehicles. Most participants probably won’t return to Federal Way to fight their $20 ticket, but we certainly want them to return in the future. I feel this may have left a bad taste in their mouth.

Michael Henson, Tacoma