Transportation Committee hears presentation regarding parking deck appraisal process and operations
Earlier this week the Birmingham City Council was presented with a proposal to sell six of the City’s 11 parking decks, which have been appraised at roughly $41 million.
During Wednesday’s Transportation Committee, Councilor Steven Hoyt — who chairs the committee — brought forth a presentation from Mr. Ben Wesley, CAPP, CPP, Market President, Premium Parking, a company whose focus is technology, analytics and parking operations.
During the presentation, Wesley touched on several topics ranging from parking deck appraisals, expenses, efficiencies and more. While the presentation was not specific to Birmingham’s decks, Councilor Hoyt said it was crucial to see how these assets are appraised and utilized.
“This is very good information and this is how I think we should approach this issue,” Councilor Hoyt said. “We wouldn’t know the right questions to ask without all the information we’ve seen today. I’m grateful for your time and consideration by being here and presenting this to us. Moving forward this will be important to have, not just for us, but for the administration and the Birmingham Parking Authority as well. We need to have a full picture of what we’re dealing with.”
The roughly $41 million sale would be used to help fill the gap left by the $63 million budget shortfall the City has seen due to COVID-19. Some Councilors, including Hoyt, have raised concerns over selling off city-owned assets for a one-time lump sum.
The 11 decks generate about $5 million annually for the City.
The Birmingham Parking Authority Board will be meeting this week to discuss the potential sale of the decks. The Council has requested additional information from the BPA including financials and parking data in order to make an informed decision about the potential sale, which must first be approved by the legislative body.
