Ballard Parking, Ballard, Washington

One of Seattle’s fastest growing neighborhoods, Ballard, Washington is a “city within a city” with a population of nearly 48,000 residents. With over 10 million tourists flocking to Seattle every year, the demand on parking enforcement exposed that a hand-written ticketing system was no longer a viable option, especially for private properties and businesses. Ballard Parking was looking for a paperless alternative, and they came to United Public Safety for a solution.

Mark Durall, General Manager of the Olympic Athletic Club, spoke with UPsafety about his satisfaction with our parking and permitting solution since its successful implementation in December of 2012. Having considered many other options, Mr. Durall explained, “We interviewed several different parking vendors and were really impressed with the customer service we received prior to signing on. We were also impressed with your contracts in the public sector, particularly law enforcement and municipalities.”

Recalling the training process, Mr. Durall was impressed by the knowledge and support that the UPsafety team provided for his department. He expounded, “When people are being taught a new system, the assumption is that anyone should be able to get it. However, the UPsafety team taught it so well that we could explain it back to them. I thought it was a really beneficial method of training.”

Mr. Durall noted many inefficiencies with his previous handwritten ticket method and how the UPsafety solution overcame every one. “The previous system was much more challenging administratively because we couldn’t upload [the tickets] into the cloud. We couldn’t manage the information as easily. We didn’t have a ticket that was waterproof or have the ability to take photographs of the car with GPS location that could be included on the ticket.” These features have produced a drastic turnaround in violations. “What we’ve seen is a dramatic increase in the number of people who pay their tickets.”

To date, Ballard Parking has written over 2,700 tickets and issued nearly 9,000 permits. Ballard’s top priority as a private parking authority is to ensure compliance. They required a solution that could handle a high volume of permits for their seven lots. With over 200 spaces that serve multiple businesses, Mr. Durall has “kind of a unique process. We issue and manage more permits than most places do because we have thousands of customers.” Regulating the turnover of available parking is crucial to the smooth operation of these businesses.

When asked if he would recommend UPsafety to his peers, Mr. Durall exclaimed, “Before anyone else, absolutely! I wish that every business was like United Public Safety. You guys do a great job and have a great product that you stand behind and service. There are no problems with the software. You’ve taken what was really a full-time admin job and reduced it to maybe an hour a day by automating the system. The solution benefits more than our business, it benefits our customers because parking is more accessible. It’s a beautiful system.”

Thank you to Mr. Durall and Ballard Parking for doing your research and allowing UPsafety to do what we do best!

Customer Profile

Segment
Private Parking
Permits Issued
8,903
Total Parking Spaces
200 spaces

quotemarkWhat we've seen is a dramatic increase in the number of people who pay their tickets.quotemark
Mark Durall
General Manager of the Olympic Athletic Club