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May | June | 2014 CCIM.com
Evaluating operations could lead to better
service and greater proļ¬ tability.
Parking
Problems
by Phill Schragal
Parking is a vital part of many commercial property opera-
tions. In multifamily, of ce, and retail properties, parking
is of en the f rst thing that visitors experience, and park-
ing facilities of en serve as de facto lobbies for commercial
buildings and complexes. As such, tenants expect conve-
nient, safe, and secure parking for their staf and customers.
Yet, in spite of parking's importance, many property
owners take a hands-of approach to working with their
parking operators. If specif c problems don't arise, owners
are of en content to give their operators a free hand from
year to year. However, when assessing the bottom-line per-
formance of an operator, it makes sense to take a closer
look every now and then.
Since the recession and the slow market upswing, prop-
erty owners and managers have focused on controlling
costs as a way to improve a building's f nancial prof le.
In addition, investors considering ways to add value to
a property acquisition may have overlooked parking as
a potential area to improve operations and prof tability.
In both cases, ignoring a parking operation could result
in lost revenue to def ciencies in a number of key areas,
including audit control, facility maintenance, marketing
policies and pricing for daily and monthly rates, staf ng
requirements, and technological advancements.
Providers, Not Partners
In the past, property owners of en regarded parking oper-
ators as their partners. However, parking management
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