Bikers beware of Main Stage restaurant on Morse!!!!

If you ride in Rogers Park beware as you go down Morse West bound on the North side of the street. As you approach the el tracks the last restaurant is Main Stage Act One. Their valet sign obstructs the entire bike lane. I stopped last night twice and tried to have a reasonable rational discussion with the representative from VIP Valet but basically got a big go F$@K yourself from him. So on the second stop I went straight to the manager who agreed to move it for last night but stated "Look we're going to block the bike lane period we want our customers to see the sign" now mind you the entire parking lane along the front of the establishment is empty and could accommodate the sign and be visible but neither Mike the Manager nor the VIP rep thought that was good enough but last night was OK because of weather conditions for cyclist. Just a warning folks I have a reasonable doubt that this obstruction will be going away any time soon.

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Permalink Reply by Spencer "Thunderball" Thayer! on September 5, 2011 at 3:11pm

You have five options all of which should be applied in a reasonable measure with enough time for everything.

 

1) Keep bothering the manager.

2) Document the violation with photography and video and then call the Alderman.

3) Call the Police.

4) Get a bunch of bikers to block the restaurant.

  a) Either just the valet parking.

  b) or go all out and try and block the business all together.

5) Steal the sign with a large group of bikers and toss it over said bridge.

 

All of those options are great.

Permalink Reply by Tank-Ridin' Ryan on September 5, 2011 at 5:09pm
Correct me if I'm wrong, but I foresee options 4 and 5 causing the business to exercise option 3 on the cyclists.

Spencer "Thunderball" Thayer! said:

You have five options all of which should be applied in a reasonable measure with enough time for everything.

 

1) Keep bothering the manager.

2) Document the violation with photography and video and then call the Alderman.

3) Call the Police.

4) Get a bunch of bikers to block the restaurant.

  a) Either just the valet parking.

  b) or go all out and try and block the business all together.

5) Steal the sign with a large group of bikers and toss it over said bridge.

 

All of those options are great.

Permalink Reply by Tank-Ridin' Ryan on September 6, 2011 at 3:23pm

Thanks Howard.  Unfortunately, my posts on this thread really stem from the ridiculousness of it all.  It's absurd to see people freaking out like this about a sign in the bike lane.  (Where are all the exclamation marks for the topic about people getting beaten on the lakefront?)

 

And some of the ways suggested to deal with this problem with the sign raise this issue to another level of ridiculousness.  Theft and vandalism do wonders to change hearts and minds, don't they?  But maybe the methods are appropriate.  We are talking about a people being oppressed by sign placement, aren't we?

 


h' said:

Ryan, if you're campaigning to be the 2012 poster child for the Internalized Oppression Institute, you have my vote.

Permalink Reply by Chris Ritter on September 7, 2011 at 8:16am

Greetings to all!

 

Contrary to popular opinion, I'M the manager of Act One and Mayne Stage. We were closed on Monday for labor day, so I did not receive Mr. Markus' email which was sent on Sunday night until Tuesday morning. Here is my reply:

 

Dear Mr. Markus:

 

Thank you for writing and bringing this issue to my attention. This is the first I have been made aware of any issues regarding the placement of the valet sign or the behavior of our contractors.

 

I can assure you I will investigate the situation and take immediate corrective measures where applicable.

 

The suggestion that we consider ourselves “above the law” is simply not accurate. We work closely with the Chicago Police Department every day and are committed to the safety and security of everyone who has an interaction with this venue, even if they’re just passing by.

 

We are actually a very bicycle-friendly organization. Our company provides employees with bicycle reimbursements to encourage the use of two wheels over four, sponsors several rides each year and I personally worked closely with Alderman Moore to have bike racks installed in front of the property so that bicyclists would feel welcome.

 

If possible, I would appreciate your forwarding links to the reports you referred to. I was unable to locate them via Google search, but I’m not terribly computer-savvy.

 

Thanks again,

 

Chris Ritter

 

 

 

CHRIS RITTER

GENERAL MANAGER

MAYNE STAGE/ACT ONE PUB

1328-30 W. Morse Ave.

Chicago, IL 60626

773-381-4551

www.maynestage.com

 

*** END OF MESSAGE ***

 

I was not present for the interaction between our restaurant manager, Mike, and Mr. Cummings, so I cannot speak to what actually happened. I can tell you that Mike is one of the best hosts I've ever worked with and way his behaviour has been described in this forum is dramatically uncharacteristic.

 

Regardless of what transpired, I have advised our valet company that if the sign is ever placed in the bike lane again, we will be finding a new contractor. I welcome any and all feedback in this area and ask that I be contacted directly with any complaints so that I may give them my immidiate attention.

 

Cheers and happy riding!

 

Chris

Permalink Reply by Spencer "Thunderball" Thayer! on September 7, 2011 at 9:23am

Well there you go! See option zero. Don't worry about it!

Permalink Reply by Jason W on September 7, 2011 at 10:49am
Happy ending! Good on ya Chris!
Permalink Reply by Anne on September 7, 2011 at 10:51am

Thanks Chris, and, welcome to the Chainlink!

er, well, wish you'd joined under different circumstances perhaps, but welcome!!

Permalink Reply by Chris Ritter on September 7, 2011 at 11:55am

hmmmm.... :-)

 

h' said:

Educational psychologists agree pretty much universally, based on a legacy of research on the subject, that operant conditioning/positive reinforcement is much more effective in shaping a desired behavior than trying to extinguish a behavior with negative reinforcement.


h' said:
We'll see.

Jason W said:
Happy ending! 
Permalink Reply by Kevin C Dormant on September 7, 2011 at 12:08pm

Quick! Over here!

 

No wait over here!

 

No everybody, over here!

 

Permalink Reply by Jeff Markus on September 7, 2011 at 3:15pm

This is the response from Mayne Stage....

Dear Mr. Markus:

Thank you for writing and bringing this issue to my attention. This is the first I have been made aware of any issues regarding the placement of the valet sign or the behavior of our contractors. I can assure you I will investigate the situation and take immediate corrective measures where applicable. The suggestion that we consider ourselves “above the law” is simply not accurate. We work closely with the Chicago Police Department every day and are committed to the safety and security of everyone who has an interaction with this venue, even if they’re just passing by. We are actually a very bicycle-friendly organization. Our company provides employees with bicycle reimbursements to encourage the use of two wheels over four, sponsors several rides each year and I personally worked closely with Alderman Moore to have bike racks installed in front of the property so that bicyclists would feel welcome. If possible, I would appreciate your forwarding links to the reports you referred to. I was unable to locate them via Google search, but I’m not terribly computer-savvy. Thanks again, Chris Ritter CHRIS RITTER GENERAL MANAGER MAYNE STAGE/ACT ONE PUB 1328-30 W. Morse Ave. Chicago, IL 60626 773-381-4551 www.maynestage.com

Permalink Reply by Chris Ritter on September 8, 2011 at 3:58am

I appreciate what you're saying 100%.

 

I take none of this personally and am not seeking apologies nor accolades.

 

I have only been struck by the general assumption that there wasn't even the slightest possibility (however small) of my being a decent guy trying to do a good job who means what he says.

 

I fully appreciate that the proof is in the pudding and time will tell.


We have been closed the last couple of days as we are introducing a brand-new menu at the Act One restaurant tonight and will be open for the first time since Sunday at 5pm.

 

If anybody on this thread cares to park their bicycle at the racks out front and look me up, mention the chainlink and I'll buy you a free flatbread (they're delicious!)

 

Cheers,

 

Chris

 

p.s. that's a standing offer, not just for tonight!
h' said:

Exactly.

First comes a solid block of time with no valet sign in the bike lane.

Then comes positive reinforcement.

Please don't take it personally if I don't join the victory celebration (and/or apologize to you for a "tempest")  based on a nice letter.

Actions/words etc.etc.

Permalink Reply by dan brown on September 8, 2011 at 7:14am

this is great to see a positive response from Chris Ritter on behalf of the Mayne Stage and generally positive responses from the chainlink. Wish they all could turn out like this one...but that's life.

 

3 cheers...let's all go get some flatbread and more now

 

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