[Vision2020] Closed doors

Thu Apr 12 06:03:42 PDT 2007

I agree with you 100%, Ellen, when it comes to use of police services.  

My father, as I have stated here before, is a retired LAPD officer.  There
were many instances, while he was a beat cop, that he was called upon to
respond to something that could have been handled by the proprietor or
amounted to nothing more than a neighborhood spat.  He still jokes about a
few of them that he remembers.  

A police officer is trained to respond to situations and deal with them as
they occur whether that police officer's response was initiated by a
telephone call or not.

The thing that should concern us most is when the rapport between a
community and its police force degenerates and those calls are no longer
made.

Seeya round town, Moscow.

Tom Hansen

Moscow, Idaho

"Don't tell me why I can't.
Show me how I can."

- Author Unknown 

  _____  

From: vision2020-bounces at moscow.com [mailto:vision2020-bounces at moscow.com]
On Behalf Of Ellen Roskovich
Sent: Wednesday, April 11, 2007 9:06 PM
To: vision2020 at moscow.com
Cc: carolwstrobel at hotmail.com; mmike at hotmail.com
Subject: [Vision2020] Closed doors

Today I stopped by the Moscow Hotel thinking I might grab a bite to eat at
Archies.  I am so sad to see they have closed their doors and the restaurant
is for rent.

Two weeks ago I was in Seattle and I read the postings to V2020 about the
protests in Friendship Square, otherwise I wouldn't have a clue about a
possible reason for closing.

I hate to see them leave.  I enjoyed every meal I ate there. . . breakfast,
lunch and dinner.  I always brought someone with me and everyone agreed that
Archies was an asset to downtown.  I know the "out to lunch bunch" looked
forward to their visits to Archies.  What a sad loss!

There's been a lot of discussion lately about Moscow. . . . it's growth, the
health and vitality of it's businesses, even having potential businesses
pass some type of scrutiny by City Council before being allowed to open
their doors and "nuisanse businesses" being shut down for over usage of
police services.  For the most part, those who are participating in these
discussions are not business owners.  You are users, not providers.  

Understand I am not a very PC person who is up on all the latest PC jargon.
. . it changes all the time.  So I will say "sorry" ahead of time.  I do not
mean to offend but I have something to say.

Moscow has problems.  I find it ironic that Archies closed their doors
because a group of people took offense at the alleged treatment of a person
with some type of physical, mental or emotional challenge.   Maybe you just
don't know what kind of city you actually live in.  Let me clue you in.   As
a business owner I was approached by the MPD and asked if I would like a
certain challenged person barred from my restaurant.  I said no. . . I did
not find him to be a problem.  All he wanted was a quiet place to drink his
coffee and smoke.  We allowed smoking in the front room in those days.  They
asked me if he paid for his coffee and I said yes. . . because he did.  The
only "problem" was his seizures.  That is not his fault. . . and the reality
is ALL of us are only one fall away of being in the same boat.   One time my
customer had a seizure, fell off the bar stool and hit his head hard. . . I
did what most business owners would do under like circumstances and called
911.  When help arrived I thought they were rather rough in rousing him but
then I was shocked when I was told to "never call them again" for this
individual because they would not respond.  I had never heard of such a
thing and they said this loud enough that one of my customers waiting for a
to go pizza heard them say it to me.  She seemed quite upset and I thought
it because she had just witnessed the seizure and the arrival of police and
medics.  I apologized for the fuss and she told me she was upset at what I
was told. . . that a family member had epilepsy and she hoped they were
never treated like this if they had a seizure in public.  I never barred
this man from my establishment like others in this town did.  I watched as
he was hog-tied and thrown into the back of a patrol car because he
"trespassed" at another nearby establishment. I even posted bail for him. .
. and he had me paid back in full within an hour of his release.   I can't
even say that about some of my "friends".  Maybe some of you will say an
owner has the right. . . and then I think of Archies. . . and then I don't
understand any of it.

There was occasion to call 911 again for a different person. . . a young man
in a motorized wheelchair.  His chair got stuck in racing mode and he hit my
dumpster in the alley, hit a tree, nearly went off into sixth street traffic
and ended up in the bushes at the offices next door with the wheelchair on
top of him.  I thought there was a good possibility of broken bones and it
was obvious the wheelchair was no longer safe transportation.  Did I get a
response to my call?  Well, silly me. . . wasn't I told they wouldn't
respond to my address.  Thank heavens he was only scratched and scared.  I
ended up calling the pharmacy that handles the purchase/rental of these
wheelchairs and they came right out to assist him.  It was long after I
found another solution that a lone cop car came to the front of Gambino's
and parked.  It was obvious he had taken his time. . stopped for a car wash
on the way over.  The water was still beaded up on the car.  I didn't wait
for him to get out of his car. . . I walked over a told him through the
window that he wasn't needed.  I handled the situation myself.  Then I
composed a letter to the Chief because I was REALLY angry.  He replied in a
timely manner.  Said he was out of town at the time this happened and he'd
look into matters.  Hope he did.

I began to wonder if this happens to others.  I also wondered if I was
flagged in some manner. . . .was it the address on sixth street or the name
Roskovich? You get a little paranoid, but you don't want to take any chances
either.  Well, once when my late husband had a heart attack at home I didn't
call 911 and wait around to see.  Our son carried him to the car and drove
while I called Gritman to let them know that a heart patient was coming in
with chest pains.  By the time I arrived at Gritman,  they were already
talking about getting him flown up to Spokane.

I have nothing but admiration for the doctors, nurses and quality of care at
Gritman.  But getting there can be tricky.  I hope others never have to go
through what I went through when my elderly mother had a nasal hemorrhage.
It was another time when Don was in Spokane hospitalized with his heart. . .
.the phone rang around 5:00 a.m. and you just  know it's not going to be
good.  But instead of a nurse, I had my mother on the phone and she sounded
scared out of her wits.  I went right over to find her with a bathtowel to
her face, drenched in blood.  It was difficult for her to talk or breathe.
It was dark, icy and I had no choice but to call 911 for help.   We waited
and finally I could see lights coming up Cherry St. hill.  It turned out to
be one police officer who came into the apartment and promptly sat himself
down on my mother's sofa and made himself comfortable.  I just wanted to GO!
He was very pleasant. . . he took out a notepad and a pen  and asked for her
name.  I answered for her.  He wrote it down.  I just want to go, NOW!
Next, he asks my almost 80 year old mother "are you a student at the U of I"
and I heard her say "no, I'm too old" from behind a blood soaked towel.
THAT DID IT!  I asked him point blank if the ambulance was on it's way.  He
told me NO. . .he was there to assess the situation and determine if there
was a medical necessity for dispatch of the ambulance.  At that point I got
my mother's coat, told the officer he would no longer be needed once he
helped me get my mother down the icy steps and into my car.  I wasn't going
to waste another precious minute.  Once I got my mother into the emergency
room I had the opportunity to ask the doctor on duty if the Moscow P.D. have
been given the medical training and knowledge to assess emergencies such as
this and she told me NO.  I told her that I thought she should let the board
know about this because they were setting themselves up for a potential
lawsuit sometime in the future.  Have things changed. . . I sure hope so. .
. don't you?  I do know that I needed to call 911 toward the end of Don's
illness and the response time was great.  But only a short two years earlier
it left a lot to be desired.

So, "J :)" now you know why I got a little bent when you raised the question
yesterday about "nuisance businesses" who take up time and resources of city
services.  But I shut up before I said too much.  But heck. . .maybe you all
need to learn about the problems associated with running a business in this
town. The town really can't change or move forward unless people speak up
and everyone understands what they are working towards.

I don't know if anyone would want to try and put a restaurant in Archie's
spot.  What a shame we lost them. . . and it's so much more important and
far reaching in our business community than who's buying kitty litter at
Wal-Mart.

Ellen Roskovich

  _____  

Exercise <http://g.msn.com/8HMAENUS/2728??PS=47575>  your brain! Try
Flexicon. 

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