Spring Issue Summer Issue - Michigan Parking Association

www.mpatoday.org
Quarterly Newsletter of the Michigan Parking Association
SUMMER 2014
President’s Parking Space
by Shawny DeBerry, Ph.D., MBA
This is the
Summer
Edition
of the Michigan
Parking Association
Quarterly Newsletter
and
you
know
what that means –
Fore! Who’s ready
for a game of golf?
Dr. Shawny DeBerry Summertime is golf
time with the MPA.
MPA President
Our Annual Golf
Outing is scheduled for July 24, 2014 at
the Timber Ridge Golf Club in E. Lansing,
Michigan.
Each year we have invited all of those
golfers who think they can play better
than Arnold Palmer, Webb Simpson or
Tiger Woods to come and participate
in the MPA Masters. Although we
recognize this is not really the Masters or
US Open, we guarantee you will enjoy a
great golf outing. There are sponsorship
opportunities available to represent
your organization along the greens.
Registration deadline is July 14th so
hurry up and get your foursome.
Please see inside newsletter for more
information.
We had a successful Spring Workshop
this year that was facilitated by Vicki Pero,
Partner with the Marlyn Group. There
were two training opportunities for your
front-line employees, supervisors, and
managers. The workshops took place
in Grand Rapids on May 22nd and in
Detroit on June 19th. The workshop
was designed to address topics that
included: Managing Diversity and
Cultural Differences in the Workplace;
Conflict Resolution: How to Handle a
Difficult Customer and Interpersonal
Relationships; and Mixing and Managing
Four Generations in the Workplace –
Veterans, Baby Boomers, Generation X,
and Generation Y. What a fantastic season
of training. We would like to thank Vicki
for sharing her knowledge and expertise
with the Michigan Parking Association.
The 2014 MPA Annual Fall Conference
is quickly approaching. The conference
will take place October 8-10, 2014 at The
Atheneum Suite Hotel and Conference
Center in Detroit. Our theme is “Are You
Branding? How to Effectively Brand Your
Products and Services”. We are excited to
have as our keynote speaker Rob Frankel,
Author of “The Revenge of Brand X”
and other many published articles. Visit
RobFrankel.com for more biographical
information. Registration is available
for the conference at a rate of $225 for
members and $275 for non-members. You
can reserve your room at the Atheneum
Suite Hotel and Conference Center at a
rate of $149 plus 15% tax. The cut-off date
to guarantee the group rate is September
7, 2014.
You have an opportunity to join us at
these two dynamic events – The Golf
Outing in E. Lansing and the Annual Fall
Conference in Detroit.
You don’t want to miss either of these
exciting events. Please visit our website
for more information. We are listening
to you and we value your membership. It
really is an amazing time to be a part of
the MPA!
Multi-Space Parking Meters Bring Much Needed Revenue
to a City Rebuilding its Downtown Core and Economy
A Case Study by Digital Payment Technologies
The City of Cedar Rapids replaced single-space meters with Digital Payment Technologies’ (DPT) multi-space parking solution. Leveraging the
flexibility of the DPT pay station’s wide range of payment options, wireless networking and communications capabilities, Cedar Rapids was
able to increase consumer convenience and created new net revenues,
to invest in community redevelopment efforts.
Cedar Rapids is the second largest city in Iowa and spans across both
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Cedar Rapids - continued from page 1
banks of Cedar River. It is a flourishing center for arts and culture in Eastern Iowa, as well as an economic hub of the state. Cedar Rapids is
nicknamed the “City of Five Seasons,” for which the “fifth season” is the time spent enjoying the other four seasons.
The Challenge: Flooding Destroys the City’s Core
In 2008, 31 feet of water flooded into the downtown area, covering 10 square miles, destroying infrastructure, and causing billions of
dollars in damage. Though the city received FEMA money to help with the rebuilding process, it was not enough to fully revitalize the downtown core. In addition to experiencing a flood, the city had also been dealing with outdated single-space parking meters, which broke
down frequently and increased maintenance costs. As the single-space meters were unable to accept credit cards, they increased labor costs
associated with collections and were less convenient for consumers.
Cedar Rapids began looking into revenue-generating options and determined that implementing a new, modern parking system would deliver the most benefits as it would provide consumers with additional payment methods, offer businesses a validation method, and generate
more revenue, which could then be invested directly back into the downtown recovery program.
The Vision and Goals: Revitalize the Downtown Core and the Economy
In 2011, the “Park Cedar Rapids” initiative was launched with a vision to enhance the downtown tenant and visitor experience while being a
catalyst for economic development. The City of Cedar Rapids transferred management of the downtown parking system to Downtown Parking Management, Inc., (DPMI), which was tasked with overseeing the Park Cedar Rapids program as well as ensuring that the parking system
overall was efficient, safe and customer-focused. DPMI also worked to foster the development of jobs and new business, support the local
economy, and combat community deterioration through the successful supervision and improvement of public parking assets.
DPMI chose Republic Parking System to manage the day-to-day operations for the publicly owned, but privately managed parking system.
The decision was made to replace 350 single-space parking meters with 40 new LUKE multi-space pay stations from DPT.
Implementing the Revitalization Plan
The LUKE pay stations were sold and installed by Harstad Controls in Minnesota, which provides local service and support for DPT. The pay
stations were selected for their ability to run entirely on solar power, their wireless networking capabilities, a coupon feature, and multiple
payment options. The ability to have Harstad Controls as the local reseller was also among the reasons the LUKE pay stations were selected.
The LUKE parking meters were deployed with approximately one per block face, and operate in Pay-by-Space mode to provide consumer
convenience and ease of enforcement. In so doing, the city has saved consumers from having to return to their vehicles and display receipts,
and has also enabled enforcement officers to go specifically to unpaid parking spaces to see if a vehicle is present, rather than having to
check each receipt on every dashboard.
Park Cedar Rapids spread the launch over a six-week period, which allowed it to spread out its labor force and work through any internal
issues. It also enlisted ambassadors to promote the new parking system, handing out flyers about the new LUKE parking meters with helpful
information for consumers.
Benefits of Flexibility
Residents and visitors alike have expressed satisfaction with the new pay stations due to their easy interface and ability to accept payments in cash, credit cards, coupons, and pay-by-phone. Park Cedar Rapids estimates that 67 percent of transactions are made by credit card
which is more than a 50 percent increase from previous years. Consumers have also noted that they like the networked capability of the pay
stations that allows them to extend their parking session using any pay station in the downtown core.
Through various downtown outreach sessions Jon Rouse, general manager of Park Cedar Rapids, has found that many downtown business owners are also enjoying benefits from the new pay stations, due to the variety of payment options available as well as the ability to
provide validations to customers. “One of the most important benefits for our downtown business owners has been the ability for them to
provide validations to their customers with the coupon code feature Digital Payment Technologies offers,” said Rouse. “We saw a 104 percent
increase in validations from 2011 to 2012 and we’re happy to know that this unique feature has become so valuable.”
Although not all businesses use the coupon feature, many businesses like to pay for their customers’ parking. They, therefore, provide a coupon code before their patrons come downtown, which is paid for in advance. This can also be provided as a thank-you, following a purchase,
to be used by patrons the next time they park downtown. Most recently, Park Cedar Rapids formed a partnership with the new library in
downtown Cedar Rapids, whereby any patron can have their parking validated for up to two hours, as long as they are in good standing with
the library. Overall, a total of 15 percent of transactions for Park Cedar Rapids come from coupon codes.
Results: Putting Revenue Back into the Community
In addition to a positive response from the public, the LUKE pay stations have translated into increased revenue. In 2012, Park
Cedar Rapids’ net revenue increased 43 percent over the previous year and this growth is expected to increase over the coming years.
As the new pay stations require less maintenance and collections, the staffing costs associated with managing them have also decreased.
Park Cedar Rapids estimates that approximately $120,000 in operational costs have been re-allocated to other projects, which badly needed
them, and has ultimately helped increase the profitability of this operation.
Improving the safety of the community was paramount to Park Cedar Rapids and revenue was used to install brighter and more energy
efficient lighting, implement regular skywalk and parking ramp patrols, start a complimentary parking shuttle service, and hire security
personnel to patrol facilities 24/7.
The project and the initiatives that resulted from its revenues, alongside the hard work that Rouse put into developing comprehensive
maintenance programs and building a strong team, helped earn Rouse the International Parking Institute’s 2013 Parking Supervisor of the
Year title.
Key Learnings
By removing the inconvenience of coin-only parking meters and offering more payment options, Park Cedar Rapids realized that more
people ended up paying for parking, which resulted in a great increase in net revenue, which could then be reinvested back into the city.
Having one pay station per block also now means that Park Cedar Rapids has fewer parking meters to maintain. This leads to less
maintenance and collection costs for the city.
Park Cedar Rapids also learned that not all cellular communication networks have consistent coverage in specific areas. When the first
network Park Cedar Rapids chose began causing communication delays, Park Cedar Rapids realized the need to switch to another network. It quickly realized another benefit of working with DPT is the ability to easily switch between GSM and CDMA networks. Unlike many
multi-space vendors that only support one wireless option, DPT supports both GSM and CDMA.
Although not a factor in its initial purchasing decision, Park Cedar Rapids soon realized the value of DPT’s Digital API solution. Digital API
enabled Park Cedar Rapids to easily integrate its existing third-party systems with DPT’s cloud-based management system allowing for
seamless data exchange between the various systems.
Choosing to invest in parking meters that offered an easy to use interface, the ability to accept a wide range of payment options, and
networked capability all combined to offer strong value to Park Cedar Rapids and an improved consumer experience for the city’s inhabitants and visitors. The effectiveness of the launch, including the helpful Park Cedar Rapids ambassadors program and flyers, meant that
downtown business owners and visitors were all able to embrace the new LUKE pay stations. The city as a whole has now found that the net
revenue generated has been able to revitalize and restore its beloved downtown.
board of directors
President
Dr. Shawny L. DeBerry
Wayne State University
shawnydeberry@yahoo.com
Vice President
Catherine Burch
Central Parking
cburch@spplus.com
Secretary
Satina Maddox
City of Detroit
maddoxs@detroitmi.gov
Treasurer
Dave Malewitz
Traverse City Parking Services
dave@downtowntc.com
Immediate Past President
Jon Frederick
Wayne State University
jfrederick@busops.wayne.edu
Members at Large
Jeff Timar
Traffic & Safety Control Systems, Inc.
jefft@trafficandsafety.com
Margaret Hannon
Henry Ford Health Systems
mcranda1@hfhs.org
Barbara Singleton
City of Grand Rapids Parking Services Dept.
bsinglet@ci.grand-rapids.mi.us
Traci Shell
City of Lansing
tshell@lansingmi.gov
Bob Dietz
City of Jackson
bdietz@cityofjackson.org
Associate Members
Julie Parisian
Aaron Terpstra
Keith Hay, Jr.
Debby Nyenhuis
Michigan Parking Association
c/o WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY
PARKING AND TRANSPORTATION
91 W. Forest
Detroit, MI 48201
Biometrics to Replace ID Badges
By Margaret Hannon; Henry Ford Hospital
Throw out your parking badge.
Biometrics is controlling access!
Where I work we are exploring the use
of two such systems using physical
attributes to identify a person. It’s a
novel approach that can relieve us of
having to carry IDs. We are looking at
two such technologies; iris scans and
facial recognition. Iris scanners use
mathematical pattern recognition of
individuals eyes. Face recognition is
now becoming a fast growing technology for confirming identity. Face recognition
technology uses a series of landmarks on ones face. For example; the distance
between eye centers turn unique biological characteristics into quantifiable data
known as biometrics. Just think of a face print like a finger print. Either way, I’m
looking for successful results and no longer having to listen to “I forgot my badge”.
upcoming events
MPA GOLF OUTING
Thursday, July 24, 2014 • Timber Ridge Golf Course, East Lansing
MPA Annual fall conference
October 8-10, 2014
The Atheneum Suite Hotel and Conference Center, Detroit, MI
$149 per night (guaranteed group rate by September 7th)
Conference Rate: $225 Members $275 Non-Members $350 Vendor
Theme: Are You Branding? How to Effectively Brand Your Products and Services
Keynote Speaker: Rob Frankel, Author; “The Revenge of Brand X” & other published articles
To register, visit our website at www.mpatoday.org To reserve your room with the MPA rates, call 877-901-6632.