You see, Nancy Eshelman — a long-time opinion writer at the Patriot News — published a story over the weekend complaining about downtown Harrisburg.  I’ve read and re-read her article several times, and I’ll be damned if I can figure out what, exactly, she is complaining about.  Read the article for yourself and if you can come up with anything, please let the rest of us know.  The only conclusions I’m able to reach from that particular article are:

• Nancy Eshelman eats dinner downtown at 2am (incidentally, where?)
• Nancy Eshelman is confused about the location of Beaver Stadium
• Loud noises

I think she might have attempted to bring up guns, too.

I get that she’s complaining about “downtown Harrisburg” and “people” and “music”.  That’s pretty clear.  And she’s extremely displeased with the way 20-somethings behave these days.  Twenty years ago (we’re talking 1991, in case you’re bad with math), 22-year-olds had checkbooks.  Today, they ruin downtown with their “loud music” (and I bet nobody ever pays their tab by check anymore).

Oh, and something about vomit.  And urine.  She definitely seems to think that downtown Harrisburg is a Lovecraftian nightmare of people enthusiastically vomiting and urinating all over everything in sight.

Nancy, this is what 20-somethings do (the going downtown to socialize part, not the vomiting and urinating part).  This is how they spend their weekends.  Not all of them, of course, but the ones within the scope of your article do.  It’s part of life.  Rest assured that most of the participants of the “downtown debauchery” (that’s a first) go home and have meaningful, productive jobs to attend to, which they do quite well.  Some of them even have children, tucked away with a babysitter.  Some will take cabs home.  Many more will ride with a designated driver.  A handful will even walk.

And then there are those who aren’t even 20-somethings.  Having spent a good chunk of my 20s working in a downtown nightclub, I can say with absolute authority that bad behavior knows no age limit.

Downtown can be a noisy place.  In case you missed the circa-2001 memo, downtown is the city’s entertainment district.  It is intended to be a place where people can go out, socialize, and generally enjoy themselves.  It is not meant to be a quiet getaway where 60-somethings can knit in peace.  That you would even presume this to be the case defies words.

While you may be pleased with yourself for being the nosy bluehair at the next table who shushes everybody, it’s worth pointing out that this makes you the nosy bluehair at the next table who shushes everybody.

Back on Thursday, October 14th, PennLive reported on an alleged attack that occurred the previous Saturday (10/9).  At approximately 1:30am, a newlywed couple reported that as they were exiting the garage from the fourth floor, ten guys surrounded their car, dragged the 6’3″ 250-pound husband out, beat him senseless, attacked her, and stole exactly nothing.

There were a lot of aspects of the original story that still don’t make sense:

• The attack allegedly happened at 1:30am on a Saturday. The parking garage is FULL of pedestrians at that hour!  And yet, nobody saw anything.
• Even on the fourth level, lots of people would be attempting to drive out of the garage “early” at that hour.  The layout of that garage is such that there’s really only one way out.  Nobody happened to drive past the attack?
• To exit the garage, the victims would have to drive past a cluster of Harrisburg police officers. There are always 3-5 stationed at the island between the entrance and exit ramps.  However, the victims waited until the next morning to report the attack.
• The victims possibly had to drive past Pinnacle Health’s ER — but they didn’t stop (it is possible that they exited the city via another route).
• NOBODY heard any screams.
• NOBODY, except the alleged victims, saw the incident.
• NOBODY reported a suspicious group in the area (surely, other people walked past the group of 10 alleged assailants).
• The victims first stated that nothing was taken, then reported that the man’s wallet was stolen.

Now, I’ve heard of victims not wanting to report a crime out of fear of retaliation.  But that isn’t what happened — the alleged victims reported the incident, then stopped cooperating several weeks later.

Hopefully this will all be cleared up in the next few days.

For starters, we received approximately 4000 feet of snow several days after I moved.  Thanks to my garage, I was one of the lucky ones who didn’t have to dig out my car.  And EH’s inferno-like heat meant I actually wound up leaving my heat off most of the time — even when it was in the single digits outside.

Despite the building having around 200 apartments, I don’t hear my neighbors and they don’t hear me.  When I lived here previously, this place always felt like it was built during the last of the “overbuild it” era and before the “as cheap as possible” era.  The water pressure is so high, taking a shower is like standing in front of a fire hose.  Even way up on my floor, scalding hot water arrives within seconds of opening the faucet.

But despite being awesome, my apartment isn’t flawless.  The biggest problem is that the same HVAC system that keeps my apartment toasty in the winter and chilly in the summer just so happens to be located directly outside my balcony.  It’s barely audible with the sliding door closed.  But if I open it even a crack, the noise drowns out my TV.  It’s a high-pitched turbine-sounding whine that is audible for a few blocks in any direction — you’ve heard it if you’ve ever walked near the hospital or Crowne Plaza.  Fortunately, with all the windows shut it’s quiet enough that I can tune it out (the one time it shut down due to the widespread flooding and power outages a few months ago, the deafening silence actually woke me up).

Last week I spoke with the building manager about the issue.  In reality, they’re not obligated to do anything about the noise.  It is what it is.  Shame on me for not thinking about it when I first checked the place out.  But the staff here has always gone above and beyond on the few occasions I’ve needed them, so I figured it wouldn’t hurt to ask.

Lo and behold, two more apartments had just opened up.  And coincidentally, one was the exact same floorplan as I had when I first moved in back in ’99.  The other was the same floorplan I had when I upgraded back in ’04.  In other words, the two biggest apartments in the building (save for the two “hidden” custom apartments, but those are out of my price range anyway).  The first apartment, up on the 10th floor, is part of the building’s “historic district”.

This place was built in 1966.  Originally, floors 10-14 were apartments, and floors L-9 were offices and retail space.  Starting in 1989, the building underwent a complete top-to-bottom multi-year renovation (this is why the hallways and lobby look decidedly 80s-corporate).  The apartments were completely remodeled, and the apartment-level floorplan was duplicated all the way down to the 4th floor (floors L-3 are still office space).  The end result is that apartments on the 10th floor and up have very slight cosmetic differences:  Things like lighting fixtures, closet doors, and even the hallways are almost — but not exactly — like there rest of the building.  In some cases the retrofits are obvious (like metal raceways for cable runs), but most are only apparent to those of us who nitpick.  For 99% of the potential tenants, the differences are moot, if they’re even noticed.

The second apartment is one of the “newer” ones and is considerably larger (about 1000 square feet).  With a walkthrough kitchen, a den, a “library”, and about double the storage space of my current apartment, it’s significantly bigger.  Problem is, it’s only one story up from mine and on the same end of the building — not far enough to negate the HVAC noise.

They offered me the first apartment, which has a slight size increase, for the same price as I’m paying now.  The second apartment would run an extra $60 / month.  Well worth it for the improved layout and additional space, but it wouldn’t address the noise issue.

So just as I was going down to the lease office to sign the paperwork for the 10th-floor apartment, the building manager told me that due to unfortunate circumstances, another one of the “den” apartments had opened on a much higher floor.  Would this be high enough to negate the noise?  Could this be my dream apartment?  Would this place, in effect, kick enough ass to be the new floor9 world headquaters?  I took the key, toured the apartment, and arrived at my conclusion:

Yes.

It’s in the “historic district”, making it higher up than anything I’ve ever had before.  It just received (this week) brand-new carpet and light fixtures.  I can still hear the whine of the HVAC below, sure — but it’s volume has been reduced such that it blends into that low, distant roar that is the urban soundtrack that us city-dwellers grow accustomed to.  And although the view I have now is decent enough, the view from my new pad is a massive upgrade.

The only catch is that the apartment is open right now.  I’ll need to move ASAP.  So at some point within the next week, I’ll be making a 200-foot move and vacating my current apartment barely four months after moving in.  The building manager is letting me do this without any penalty or lease shenanigans, so I’d like to help out by getting this — my present apartment — leased out as quickly as possible.  If you know anyone looking for an excellent corner apartment in downtown Harrisburg with parking and all utilities included — and who doesn’t mind a little noise — let me know!

So I can’t understand why they’re still operating in blatant violation of federal law.

Merchants can not print the full credit card number on a customer receipt.  The Fair Credit Reporting Act (15USC1681), as amended by the Fair & Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003, says so.  It also establishes liquefied damages of $1000 per violation, in addition to court costs and legal fees.  There were some exemptions built into the law to give merchants more than plenty of time to come into compliance, but the final exemption expired in December 2006.

Way back in October 2008, I sent them a very polite letter via certified mail.  I pointed out what was wrong, what they could be liable for, and how to correct it.  I also think I made it clear that I wasn’t just being a jerk about it; I really do like the place.  I hoped to convey that I would much rather see them fix the problem than take them to federal court for tens of thousands of dollars.

All of my Privado receipts from the last few months still have my credit card number printed on them.  Unbelievable.  What is wrong with these guys?  I’m under exactly zero obligation to call this matter to their attention, and they are entirely liable for ensuring self-awareness of and total compliance with all relevant state and federal laws.  Yet because I’m a nice guy, and because I’d genuinely prefer to see the problem resolved without litigation, I’m sending my second and final certified letter out on Tuesday:

Dear Privado

In my previous correspondence of 10/04/08, which was delivered via USPS Certified Mail on 10/06/08, I informed you that your credit card processing is out of compliance with federal law.  Specifically, you have failed to comply with the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. §1681 et seq) as it relates to printing credit card numbers on receipts.  I have enclosed a copy of this letter for your convenience.

Be advised that non-compliance with this law allows the victim to recover up to $1000 in liquefied damages per violation, as well as court costs and legal fees.  I urge you to consider this value against the number of receipts you currently print on a weekly basis, as well as the fact that this matter has been previously called to your attention.

I greatly enjoy Privado’s atmosphere and service, and I remain optimistic that this is nothing more than a comlpex oversight on your part.  As such, I have again chosen to contact you directly in the hopes of resolving this before a more litigious customer visits your establishment.  Please correct your credit card processing immediately.  If you are unsure of how to do this, I urge you to immediately contact your credit card processor and/or POS vendor immediately.

What else do I have to do to get these guys into compliance?  I’m rapidly running out of options.

You see, back in 2001, Pennsylvania amended an existing law (the Credit Card Information Act) to protect consumers’ credit card information.  As amended, the act requires merchants to block out all but the last five digits of your card number on a receipt.  In 2003, the Fair Credit Reporting Act was amended by the Fair & Accurate Credit Transactions Act.  This basically reads the same as Pennsylvania’s law, but also provides for damages in the amount of $1000 plus actual damages and legal costs, per violation.  All merchants who use electronically-printed receipts (as opposed to handwritten or imprinted receipts) essentially have to be in compliance no later than December 31, 2007; all of the grace periods have run out as of January 1, 2008.

So I’m puzzled as to why Privado continues to print my card number on receipts.  With the law now made into a federal statute, there are no circumstances under which a merchant can electronically print a receipt containing my full credit card number, so I’m left to wonder why card processors even allow this functionality.

Since I like Privado so much, I decided to send them a letter.  To be fair, they’re not the only merchant doing this.  I’m going to start sending out certified letters to the noncompliant establishments as I come across them, and I may not be as nice to everyone else as I’m being to Privado.  Hopefully they’ll decide to comply.  If they don’t, well, I’ve got a half dozen receipts here; I certainly wouldn’t mind paying down my car that much faster.

Privado

20 N Second St

Harrisburg PA  17101

September 29 2008

Dear Privado

This past Friday (9/18/08), I visited your establishment and ran two tabs on my Visa card.  Upon closing my tabs, I was given a receipt that contains my full, unmasked credit card number and expiration date.

I am certain you are aware that this constitutes a violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15USC1681), which states in part “…No person that accepts credit cards or debit cards for the transaction of business shall print more than the last 5 digits of the card number or the expiration date upon any receipt provided to the cardholder at the point of the sale or transaction.” The act provides damages for noncompliance in the amount of $1000 per incident — not per consumer — as well as legal costs and actual damages.

I have enjoyed coming to Privado for the past half decade (despite its numerous name and management changes).  Given some of the recent changes along Second Street, Privado has become the last unique establishment in town.  As such, I have chosen to contact you directly in the hopes that you are able to remedy this matter before my next visit, or before a less understanding customer visits your establishment.  I urge you to update your card processing procedures and/or equipment immediately.

Sincerely

(me)

UPDATE:  As of 01/24/09, Privado still has not corrected this problem.  A second letter has been sent; read all about it here.

Take Spice, for example.

A few days ago, two Spice employees — Molly Turner and John Burkholder — spoke with a Patriot News reporter about how the economy is affecting their tips.  It was an interesting story, and the fact that the employees were actually willing to give honest answers made it somewhat refreshing in this era of watered-down press-release-driven commentary.  Nothing is more droll and un-insightful than reading a corporate press release, so when actual employees give actual answers, it’s always a welcome change of pace.

Today, Nancy “Serious Business” Eshelman is reporting that both employees were fired.  Not so much “fired” as in “somebody called them up and told them not to come back”, but “fired” as in “Spice management took their names off the schedules and apparently didn’t bother to let them know until they arrived.”  When asked for a reason, Eric Desrosiers — CEO of Capitol Entertainment Group, owners of Spice — simply stated that their comments were not in line with Spice’s business principles.

That’s an interesting point.  They weren’t fired for talking to the media; in fact, the reporter actually had the manager’s permission (who in turn led the reporter to the waiter).  Rather, it appears that they were fired for not saying what Spice wanted them to say.

Naturally, Spice has a right to fire their employees for any reason and at any time.  If Eric Desrosiers doesn’t care for the fact that one of his bartenders drives a car, for example, he would be well within his legal rights to fire said bartender.  Pennsylvania is an “at-will” state which, with a few tiny exceptions, means that you can be fired without cause.  Unless the employer terminates over a protected class (such as firing an employee because she’s a woman), or violates a written employment contract, the employer is in the clear.  So with what I’ve read so far, it appears that Spice is entirely legally in the right.

But that doesn’t mean it was a wise decision.

Second Street is a picomarket driven by nothing if not PR.  My axiom for wireless applies to the downtown scene as much as it did to my stores:  The only metric that matters is customer perception.  All of the marketing, all of the sales, all of the P&L, all of the ARPU, all of the EBIDTA forecasting, all of the inventory, all of the specials — it’s all irrelevant if your customers don’t like you.  And Spice’s actions certainly aren’t going to win them anyone’s praises.

I’ve done a lot of time in corporate America.  From small regional companies with barely a hundred employees to large-scale international mammoths.  I’ve seen managers lash out at their employees in anger.  I’ve seen employees fired without so much as a phone call because said employee is dating the boss’s boss’s ex-girlfriend.  I witnessed one employee terminated because her boss got a speeding ticket on the way to the office and needed to lash out at someone.  It’s not businesslike, and it reflects very poorly on the business at hand — to say nothing of the manager.  It’s tacky, it’s classless, and, like the schoolyard bully who beats up the other kids as a means of venting his own frustration, it’s indicative of a lack of grip on reality.  And professional standards.

But as some less-ethical types will quickly point out, it isn’t technically illegal.  Therefore, they’ll continue, it must be okay.

A better approach would have been to find and resolve any underlying problems that might have been the root of the commentary in question.  Is Spice failing?  Are the prices too high for the crowd?  Is the crowd too high for the prices?  Are there too many fights?  Is the staff allocated in an inefficient manner?  Any manager worth half his or her paycheck would look to eliminate any underlying cause of the problem.  And since the problem is our slowing economy, there’s little that Spice can do.

Short of reflect back on the idea of launching a new mid- to high-price restaurant in a recession, of course.

So rather than take the comment for what it was — a realistic observation on the real-life impacts of the worsening economy — Spice got mad.  Real mad.  They lashed out.  For a comment that did not reflect poorly on Spice at all, Spice fired two employees, then tried to cover the matter with some corporate babble about the Spice experience.

Good job, Spice.  Some high-class ethics you’ve got there.

I’m not a big Starbucks fan.  Partly because their large plain coffee costs $2.09, but mostly because all of their beans always taste over-roasted.  So I’d just as soon see a local coffee shop go in.  St. Thomas Downtown, anyone?

Does anyone think this will affect the projected draw of SoMa?  The Starbucks factor doesn’t affect me personally, but we all know people who refuse to drink any coffee other than Starbucks, and/or who consider a nearby Starbucks a substantial factor in choosing lodging.

I was never at the RB, but judging by the crowd / fights usually visible at street level, I don’t think I missed anything.  I’ll stick to ABC and Fresco, thanks.

Nothing is on their website yet so this is strictly from memory.  The plans called for the renovation of two side-by-side buildings and the creation of a boutique-style (low-capacity, classy) hotel with on-site restaurant and something on the rooftop.  The architect’s rendering looked like they were trying to stay within the style of the area.  I got the impression that this will be targeted towards a slightly more adult (30+) crowd who want to be near SoMa’s activities but don’t necessarily care to be within walking distance of OMG HARDWARES BAR.

Great.  With the SoMa development already well underway, and with the University tower making progress, this might help trigger further development through the surrounding areas.  Better yet, it might help accellerate residential development (where are my condos?).  And as we all know, neither commercial nor residential development alone can sustain a city.  A combination of residential, retail, and office space — with a healthy dollop of added parking facilities — could really build a large, healthy foundation for sustained development in the city.

For the record, I still don’t feel that downtown — or midtown, for that matter — is unsafe. I think this is a surge in crime due to factors that can be debated in volumes. While there may be different groups of criminals at work, I do believe that all of the assaults are related in at least some passing way. I think it’s somewhat obvious that this started with a Group Of Bored Kids deciding to kick their shenanigans up to the criminal level a few times. Then Their Friends heard about it and did the same, and now Some Guys From Elsewhere have read about it and joined in the fray.

Second and Union is not a bad part of town. But it’s a half block off Forster and a stone’s throw from Restaurant Row. What happens if this creeps up to Second and State?  I know a lot of downtown revelers have basically ignored the attacks and kept on partying.