We visited the Eventide Oyster House in Portland on the afternoon of Aug. 16. The oyster selection and the lobster rolls are the best around.

Many tables are on the sidewalk outside, adding to the fish-house informality. The trouble was parking. The staff said, “Park on the street,” but spaces were full.

Many lots were open that day, a Sunday, but had “unauthorized cars will be towed” signs. We thought, “It’s OK to use the space on Sunday.”

But then we noticed some creepy guys on phones hanging around. Sure enough, a few minutes later, a flat-top tow truck swooped in and hitched up an out-of-state Lexus, one of only two cars in the lot.

Up the street was what looked like public parking – but with a $4-an-hour ticket machine on Sunday, that seemed dubious. Sure enough, two women were standing by a Prius, with a boot on the wheel for overtime parking.

An official-looking white van came in to remove the boot at a $70 charge. The women protested. Turns out the van and lot belong to a private company that uses the blue-and-white parking signs that are also used for city lots.

Quite a rip-off. We decided that rooking tourists for parking must be the city’s business plan, since nobody gets to use a city parking insignia without consent. Usually, smart cities from Santa Fe, New Mexico, to Freeport have free parking on Sunday and often all week to bring in the spenders.

Portland’s waterfront is its tourist attraction. You’d think they’d smarten up. Maybe writing the mayor would help.

Robert Dowling

Santa Fe, N.M.