Parking enforcement officer stays upbeat despite complaints
Shayna Hugo of Waynesburg is the recipient of a lot of frustration within Greene County, but she carries herself through life with a positive attitude. Since Aug. 27, the 26-year-old has been Waynesburg borough’s parking enforcement officer, tasked with walking around downtown and writing tickets for parking violations.
When asked about her job, she focuses on the positive aspects of it, which she said drown out the negative.
“If you think about the way the world is, you need people to stay positive,” Hugo said. “Being a woman and a mom, I have a lot on my mind and walking around helps me clear my head. It’s the best kind of medicine.”
Since starting the job, she has written about 700 tickets, according to the borough’s database. She said, based on the database, she averages 300 tickets a month.
“You would think people would be more upset about getting pulled over or going to jail than a $20 (parking) ticket, but they’re not,” she said. “I’ve been called names and received angry letters, but what they said or how they acted didn’t affect me. At the end of the day I went home and went about business as usual. I didn’t lose any sleep because in reality I am just doing my job.”
Hugo said at least once a week she deals with disgruntled, even rude motorists. She said it comes with the job and she tries to combat it by spreading kindness while walking her route.
“I like my job, but it gets tiring sometimes,” she said. “But you just gotta stay positive about it when people aren’t so nice. After a while I realized yeah, they might be mean to me, but I don’t know what kinda day they’re having so I just let it go.”
She said she often stops to talk with passersby and does her best to smile at everyone she sees, telling them to have a good day.
“I like people to have a good day,” she said. “Let’s not have a bad day just because you got a parking ticket.”
She said her favorite part of the job is the free exercise. Multiple times a day, she spends 30 to 45 minutes walking from Slinging Ink to Family Dollar on High Street, going up and down every side street in between. She then checks the lots by Waynesburg College. She starts her first round around 9 a.m. and walks her route every two hours until around 3 p.m.
“I’m pretty quick,” Hugo said with a laugh. “I didn’t realize it until I walked it, which I’m not complaining about because once it gets cold, I don’t want to be out there for very long.”
As the weather gets worse, Hugo will walk her route at her own discretion. She said her supervisors are understanding of the sidewalk and road conditions, but she plans to walk as much as she can.
“If it’s icy, I’m nervous about falling,” Hugo said. “But if I do, I will get back up and be OK.”
Before taking this position, Hugo worked at Sunoco in Waynesburg for five years and said she couldn’t advance any higher in the company. She has a toddler son and was drawn to the parking enforcement officer position for its reasonable hours and opportunity to advance.
“The last girl now works at the magistrate’s office. There’s room for advancement here and I need to look out for myself,” she said. “I’d love to be able to stay with my kid all day, but I can’t as the only parent and sole income. I can’t afford to not work.”
Hugo said her focus is on raising her son and staying on top of her finances.
“At the end of the day, I have me and my kid and my job and that’s all that matters,” Hugo said. “I’m doing all right.”