os
practiced by merchants,
manufacturers, and other groups is always an interesting check for the public relations
program of our own industry.
O the successful molders of
public opinion, the rewards
in public acceptance and
public approval, are worth many
times over the time, thought,
and money necessary to conduct
a program of public relations.
While many industries and
groups of business men have
gone far in the development and
continuance of their public rela
tions programs, our own indus
try has only recently awakened
to the benefits of presenting its
case to the public.
Outstanding in this needed
and valuable work are the Min
nesota Amusement Games Asso
ciation, the Amusement Board
of Trade of New Jersey, the As
sociated Operators of Los
Angeles County, and the Phono
graph Merchants Association
of Cleveland. These are men
tioned here because they have
r e c e n t l y accomplished note
worthy achievements, w h i c h
T
have been reported in recent is
sues of AUTOMATIC AGE.
To get a perspective of the
operation of a public relations
program, it is well to look to
groups outside of our own in
dustry, and study their methods.
Recently in the Detroit Free-
Press, Charles E. Boyd, Secre
tary of the Retail Merchants
Association, was given promin
ent space for his ideas on a cur
rently live local situation. Here’s
what he wrote to show that
parking meters will solve many
problems.
“The Retail Merchants Asso
ciation of Detroit has been an
ardent exponent of the plan for
an experimental installation of
parking meters in Detroit’s con
gested business areas since 1935.
At this time it felt that the idea
had considerable merit, and sub
sequent investigation and ex
haustive study of available data
have more than substantiated
this opinion.
The Farm M aid Dairy Bar, Detroit, Mich., is another of the growing list of ice cream and
dairy bars throughout Detroit, having a Pla-Mor remote control installation.
Installation by
A ngott Sales Co., Packard distributors, made for operator Lee Chadwick.
70
AUTOMATIC AGE
© International Arcade Museum
“Because of the unusual lay
out of its main arteries of traffic
which run through many busi
ness districts, and which, in the
main, converge in a small area
downtown, and because of the
high percentage of automo
biles to the population, among
other things, Detroit’s traffic
problems as compared to those
of other cities are greatly in
tensified. It is constantly seek
ing means to alleviate its semi
chronic vehicular snarl and any
plan which offers potentiality of
solution such as the parking me
ter plan seems to offer should
not, in our opinion, be consid
ered lightly.
“Should Detroit adopt the
plan or install meters for test
purposes it would be the largest
city in the country to date to
undertake the experiment. This,
no doubt, accounts in part for
the delay encountered in obtain
ing the approval of the Common
Council and other powers that
be.
“The Retail Merchants of De
troit favor making a test instal
lation of parking meters in the
City’s major business district,
first, because the installation has
proven so outstandingly success
ful in other cities. Approxi
mately 160 c o m m u n i t i e s
throughout the country now em
ploy this system of traffic con
trol and the results as reported
have been overwhelmingly in
favor of their continuation.
These cities in Michigan are
among those listed as users—
Flint, Grand Rapids, Saginaw,
Hamtramck, Highland Park,
Pontiac, Monroe and River
Rouge.
“Flint has had meters for
nearly two years and revenues
from the devices have paid for
the meters, their installation and
August, 1941
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