By Zach Pearce, PTMP
If you work in university parking and transportation, you quickly learn that parking is rarely just about parking. Our departments serve a remarkably diverse group of people—students, faculty, staff, medical professionals, visitors, contractors, administrators, and other university departments. Each group has different needs, expectations, and priorities. Trying to balance those needs can make parking operations one of the more challenging areas of a university to manage.
And then there’s the money.
Parking is often viewed as a simple question: Why does this cost so much? or Why can’t we just provide more parking? But behind nearly every parking decision are financial realities. Construction, maintenance, technology, enforcement, staffing, transportation services, and infrastructure all cost money. At the same time, the people we serve understandably want those costs to remain as low as possible.
This is where the “pricing battle” often begins.
Departments may want reduced rates, additional spaces, special arrangements, or exceptions for their particular needs. From their perspective, the request may seem completely reasonable. From an operational perspective, however, every exception can create another challenge to manage—and sometimes another department asking why they aren’t receiving the same consideration.
The interesting thing about parking is how quickly these conversations can become personal. A parking rate, a citation, a reserved space, or a lot assignment can feel like more than an operational decision. To the person affected, it can feel like a reflection of how the university values them.
That’s why leadership in parking requires more than knowing how to manage lots, garages, permits, and transportation systems. It requires communication, consistency, patience, and the ability to explain why decisions are being made.
We may not always be able to make everyone happy. But we can make sure people understand that there is a reason behind the decision—and that we are trying to balance the needs of the entire university community, not just the loudest voice in the room.
Zach Pearce, PTMP, is an Associate Director of Operations for Old Dominion University. Zach can be reached at zpearce@odu.edu.