Grow America reports stronger-than-expected parking revenue, outlines garage repairs and operational fixes

Jake Seal, asset manager with Grow America, presented a quarterly parking update to the city council caucus, saying year-end parking revenues through December exceeded budget by about $313,000 and outlining a package of repair, maintenance and operational follow-ups for the city’s garages.

Seal told councilors that two commercial retail spaces remain vacant — the former Colosseum unit at the Medallion Garage and a storefront at the Linden Garage — and that early tenant talks are underway for the Linden space after it returned from an eviction. He said several lease renewals are proceeding, including a two-year renewal for Comics on the Green and a five-year option the owner of Catch '21 plans to exercise in March; Moravia Health’s lease expires in September.

On capital projects, Seal said a sewer pipe serving the Medallion parking office is in design and will be bid soon; the office restrooms remain out of service while the fix is scheduled and funds are identified in the ’26 budget. He reported the Casey fire pump project completed in December, noted temporary shoring and concrete issues on the first level of the Linden Garage that will be repaired when weather permits, and said the HVAC unit at the pizza shop by Papa’s is scheduled for replacement in June. Seal said Grow America has applied for an LSA (Monroe) grant for the Linden Street elevator and submitted statewide LSA grant applications for expansion joints, concrete repair and traffic coatings across the garage portfolio.

Council members pressed Seal on accessibility and safety. A councilor asked whether the Linden Street elevator outage removes ADA compliance; Seal said the garage maintains ADA access via an alternate elevator on the other side of the garage. He also confirmed the left exit lane at Linden Street remains closed as a safety precaution because facade brick is falling, and that Grow America is obtaining quotes to repair it.

Seal updated the council on ongoing operational work: two kiosks at 3300 North Washington were repaired (battery and SD card) and a Mulberry-side pay station at Linden is out of service; Grow America is working with vendor Cadeta on refurbishment or a loaner part to restore service. He said Walker Parking Consultants is completing a weekend parking study but the study lead left the firm; Seal is meeting the replacement and expects to present results to the city by the end of summer.

On finance, Seal said the year-end numbers through December showed revenue beating budget by roughly $313,000 and that some expenses were timing-driven and will show in January. "We beat budget quite a bit in revenue, 313,000," he said. Seal explained that much of any additional revenue currently flows through the bond-restructure waterfall into reserves; if performance holds, funds are expected to start flowing back to community uses in roughly three to four years under the current structure.

Council members asked for specific follow-up data. Seal agreed to provide a comparison of net operating revenue for the six months before and after the management restructuring, figures for revenue generated by extended evening hours (5–7 p.m.), and other metrics requested during the caucus. He committed to sending the requested data by the end of next week.

Members raised constituent concerns about snow-event pricing and short kiosk grace periods. One councilor said a resident entered a garage during a snow-event window, stayed about an hour and was charged a $6 snow-event fee rather than the lower hourly rate; Carpark had advised the resident to contact city hall. Seal described the $6 snow-event rate as a concession-agreement mechanism that is triggered when the mayor’s office notifies the operator and said he would raise whether temporary free parking or adjusted kiosk logic should be considered with his board. He also said the industry-standard leave window after payment is 15 minutes but he would confirm with the operator and explore signage or an increase to 20 minutes.

Seal also discussed merchant-facing options such as prepaid or validated promo codes and said he would check Carpark’s technical capabilities and follow up with council. He indicated there was merchant outreach in November and that staff will continue to coordinate with downtown business groups.

The caucus did not take any formal votes related to Grow America’s report. Seal will email the presentation and the additional data requested by councilors; the chair thanked him and recessed the caucus for the regular meeting at 6:30 p.m.