Commentary

Parking Privatization Blossomed in 2011

Several city, university parking privatization initiatives advanced in 2011

Reason Foundation’s Annual Privatization Report 2010 declared that parking assets had become a hot privatization opportunity for local governments. This trend continued in 2011, led by an innovative agreement signed in Indianapolis. Chicago’s previously maligned parking meter privatization deal has been vindicated. Meanwhile major cities such as New York, Pittsburgh, Sacramento, Memphis and Harrisburg are exploring parking asset privatization. And in an unprecedented development, Ohio State University (OSU) began procurement for the first parking asset privatization by a public institution of higher education.

Parking asset privatization has captured the attention of lawmakers, journalists and pundits across the political spectrum. For example, in the April 14, 2011 episode of National Public Radio’s Marketplace program, host Kai Ryssdal effectively summarized the appeal of parking privatization saying,

Paying to park your car on a public street is one of those things that you just kind of have to do. It’ s not like parking meters are going away, and they do keep people from hogging the best spots all day. As an added bonus, parking can be a pretty good moneymaker when cities are short of cash. And there are a whole lot of cities in exactly that situation right now. Cities that are trying to make ends meet by leasing out parking to the private sector. [1]

A. Chicago, Illinois Parking Privatization Revisited

Before exploring new activity in parking privatization, recent developments in Chicago (the catalyst for this policy reform in the U.S.) vindicate former Mayor Richard Daley’s decision to privatize the city’s parking meters. [2]

Mayor Daley was initially criticized for using the upfront proceeds from the parking deal to plug a budget deficit. However, cost-cutting measures and an unforeseen revenue increase allowed Daley to return $50 million to the city’s depleted rainy day (or reserve) cash fund before leaving office. Separately, the Chicago Sun-Times reports the city will carry over a $45 million year-end unreserved balance ($35 million more than expected) into FY 2012, which represents the largest carry-over balance in five years. [3] (For more, see discussion of asset lease proceeds in Part 3 of this report, “Villaraigosa Administration Advocating Reform in Los Angeles.”)

An Illinois state court also dismissed a lawsuit filed by Jennifer Bunting against the Chicago-based William Blair & Co. who assessed the city’s meters at $1.15 billion for the 75-year contract. [The case is Bunting v. William Blair & Co. LLC, 10CH40418, Cook County, Illinois, Circuit Court, Chancery Division (Chicago).] Bloomberg BusinessWeek reported in May 2011 that Bunting’s negligence claim was on behalf of Chicago’s 2.8 million residents for unspecified damages, claiming the firm’s failure to assess the accurate value of the meters would lead to future tax increases to cover lost revenue. Illinois State Court Judge Kathleen Pantle explained in her April 17 ruling, “Even if, someday in the future, taxes go up, there is and will be no way to fairly trace them back to this particular lease transaction and Blair’s opinions on it in particular.” [4]

However, outside researchers are finding high levels of performance in Chicago’s parking system when compared to other major cities around the world. In September 2011 IBM published a report, entitled “IBM Global Parking Survey: Drivers Share Worldwide Parking Woes,” which surveyed 8,043 commuters in 20 cities on six continents and found: [5]

  • Parking is elusive worldwide; over half report abandoning search for parking spot;
  • Chicago reports the least amount of tickets for illegal parking; Bangalore tops the list;
  • Drivers in New Delhi, Bangalore, Nairobi and Milan argue most over parking spaces; and
  • Drivers in both developed and emerging economies face many of the same parking frustrations, regardless of where they live or their ranking in the recently released Commuter Pain Index.

IBM compiled the results of the survey into its first-ever Parking Index that ranks the emotional and economic toll of parking in a cross-section of 20 international cities, with the highest number being the most onerous. The index comprises five components:

  1. Longest amount of time looking for a parking place;
  2. Inability to find a parking place;
  3. Disagreement over parking spots;
  4. Received a parking ticket for illegal parking; and
  5. Number of parking tickets received.

IBM distilled the data into a simple figure (Figure 1 below) that shows, thanks to privatization, the Windy City is now an international leader. Chicago drivers need the shortest amount of time to find a parking space (averaging only 13 minutes with 28% of drivers finding a spot in less than 5 minutes). Chicago also has the mildest mannered drivers with only 11%, the lowest of any city, reporting getting into an argument with a fellow driver over a parking space in the last year.

Chicago also had among the lowest number of drivers receiving parking citations, trailing only Madrid and Johannesburg.

As Eric Jaffe, contributing writer to The Atlantic Cities, wrote in September 2011, “Chicagoans may pay a lot for parking, but they do seem to get something more than a spot for their money.” [6]

B. Other Developments in Parking Privatization

The rest of this section provides a detailed update of major parking privatization deals being explored by local governments across the U.S.

Indianapolis, Indiana: In August 2010, Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard announced the winning bidder for a 50-year lease of nearly 3,700 city parking meters in the downtown and Broad Ripple areas, as reported in Reason Foundation’s Annual Privatization Report 2010: Local Government Privatization. Under the lease, a team composed of Xerox-subsidiary Affiliated Computer Services (ACS) and its local partners Denison Global Parking and Evens Time have taken over responsibility for meter system operations, maintenance and capital investment, in exchange paying the city $20 million up front and a $600 million share of ongoing revenues over the 50-year lease term.

According to the Indianapolis Business Journal, the ACS-led consortium of private operators, operating as ParkIndy, split their $10 million investment in new meter installation into two phases. Phase one began with single space meters in downtown Indianapolis and Broad Ripple in March 2011. Phase two consists of multi-space meters that will be installed next. ParkIndy carefully began their roll out with signs clearly explaining how to operate the new meters and listing new operating hours and rates. They also left an enforcement grace period giving residents enough time to adjust to the changes.

On August 19, 2011 the Indianapolis Business Journal declared, “Indianapolis’ decision to lease its parking meters to a private company so far appears to be a financial boost for the city.” Under private operation total meter revenue grew to $1.7 million in the second quarter of 2011, compared to $1.3 million during the same period under public operation. Under private operation total revenue grew 360% to $498,273, up from $108,625 during the same period under public operation.

In September 2011 ParkIndy released a smart phone application that allows users to feed about 170 meters from their smart phone. By year’s end the smartphone application will be available for use with every ParkIndy meter in the city.

Further, the city is leveraging $6.35 million in upfront money from the parking meter privatization deal to spur construction of a new $15 million mixed-use parking structure on the southwest corner of the intersection of Broad Ripple and College Avenues. Mayor Ballard announced in June that Indianapolis-based Newpoint Parking, Keystone Construction and Ratio Architects are partnering with Michigan-based Walker Parking consultants on the project, according to a June 13, 2011 article in the Indianapolis Business Journal. The facility will have 350 parking spaces with retail space and a police substation on the first floor. While operators will set rates, the city will retain oversight with the ability to cap rates if necessary. Mayor Ballard explained the partnership saying:

Broad Ripple Village has long needed a garage of this magnitude to alleviate parking issues and allow for implementation of a residential parking permit system on neighborhood streets. Visitors to the Broad Ripple area will have a safe, secure, well-lit area to park their cars, while residents and their guests will more easily be able to find on-street parking near their homes. [7]

Indianapolis policymakers have demonstrated that they’re just getting started and early evidence suggests this deal will be a lasting success for the city.

New York, New York: New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is exploring leasing the Big Apple’s parking meters with a nearly $5 billion budget deficit looming in FY 2013, according to a February report by Bloomberg. In spring of 2011 the New York Economic Development Corporation issued a request for expressions of interest asking for ideas on how “to develop new sources of revenue (and restrain costs).” [8] Marc LaVorgna, a spokesman for the mayor, explains, “We’re seeking a partner to help us reduce the costs or bring in revenue and one area is parking meters.” [9]

Bloomberg also found that last year the city earned over $140 million in revenue from its 49,989 parking meters and 48,854 ticket-issuing muni-meters, while collecting $575 million in parking violation fines. Mayor Bloomberg clarified his interest in privatization during a February appearance on WOR 710 AM saying “We’re not going to turn over the right to set parking rates or set the fines or that sort of thing, but installing and maintaining equipment, there’s nothing magical about that.” [10] The city is also considering privatizing six city-owned vacant lots.

Los Angeles, California’s City Council rejected a deal to privatize city-owned parking garages, for more see Part 3 of this report (“Villaraigosa, Santana Advocate Reform in Los Angeles”).

Sacramento, California: Lawmakers in Sacramento are considering leasing almost 13,000 city- owned metered parking spaces and garages in an effort to clinch construction on a new downtown sports arena. In September 2011 Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson released a financing proposal including metered on- and off-street parking spaces that currently generate $24 million in annual parking revenue. [11] City Councilman Rob Fong explained to The Sacramento Bee in November 2011 that parking revenue taken from the city general fund for the arena would ultimately have to be replaced by additional revenue. [12]

Sacramento officials are collaborating with Los Angeles, California-based consulting firm Walker Parking and financing experts at Bank of America and Merrill Lynch to explore a lease agreement that would generate a “significant up-front cash payment.” [13] Any deal would have to be approved by the city council, and while officials are seeking an upfront payment, annual profit-sharing and meter rates limitations will likely dominate negotiations. In December 2011 the city council voted 7-2 in favor of partially privatizing its parking infrastructure and as of press time issued a request for quotations (RFQ). [14]

NJ Transit: Plans to privatize parking at 81 New Jersey Transit (NJ Transit) train stations failed to materialize this summer, but officials hope to get back on track this fall, according to a July 2011 article in the New York Post. A NJ Transit spokeswoman told the Post the delay boils down to the fact that “The (RFP) process is taking more time than first anticipated. There are more complexities.” [15] Specifically, NJ Transit does not control all the parking spaces in all its train station lots, with local townships controlling approximately 35% of the spaces in most of the facilities.

Last fall, NJ Transit issued a request for qualifications (RFQ) for a 30- to 50- year concession for some, or all, of its commuter parking facilities throughout the state. The proposed concession program-known as System Parking Amenity and Capacity Enhancement Strategy (SPACES)- aims to expand parking capacity and enhance services at up to three-quarters of the approximately 48,000 spaces controlled by NJ Transit statewide. The agency received statements of qualification from 10 bidder teams in November 2010, and the following month the agency narrowed the list down to seven qualified concessionaires eligible to bid when the agency issues a formal request for proposals.

Ohio State University (Columbus, Ohio): While major cities like Chicago and Indianapolis have grabbed the headlines in 2011, officials at Ohio State University (OSU) are discussing leasing their parking system in a first-of-its-kind agreement that officials expect will generate $600 million in revenues and avoided costs over the term of the agreement. The OSU board of trustees finance committee voted to pursue 30-50-year leases, including renewals, for the parking system composed of 36,000 parking spaces, meters and lots made available for 65,000 students on the 1,700-acre Columbus campus. This deal would be a historic first for a university that officials estimate could raise at least $375 million in upfront cash. The University will also defease nearly $80 million in outstanding bonds backed by parking payments.

According to University documents, the concessionaire will be allowed to raise rates by up to 7.5% per year for the first ten years of the lease, consistent with average rate increases over the last seven years. Over the next 40 years concessionaires will be able to raise rates at either 4% or at a rate that matches the Consumer Price Index (CPI). The Columbus Dispatch reported on October 9, 2011 that the parking system generated $28 million and had $19 million in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. Last year, the parking system generated a $3.7 million operating surplus, which went toward supporting the bus service. [16]

Proponents argue privatization allows OSU to pass operating expenses of up to $300 million on to the concessionaire while applying cash proceeds toward financing scholarships, research and academic programs. Further, the concessionaire will be asked to expand parking capacity as a part of the deal.

OSU released an RFQ that generated ten responses-seven of which qualified-for its potential parking system concession. The qualified bidding groups that have been invited to continue in the process include:

  • Alinda & InterPark
  • Carlyle Infrastructure Partners & Standard Parking
  • Industry Funds Management & Parking Solutions
  • Macquarie Capital & Central Parking
  • Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan & Imperial Parking
  • Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Ampco/ACS
  • QIC Private Capital & LAZ Parking

The University will proceed by interviewing qualified bidders, and assuming officials decide to proceed, will issue a final Request for Proposals (RFP) in the first quarter of 2012. The bidding process is expected to conclude by spring 2012.

Parking assets represent a continuation of a new approach that began last year. In 2010, the school streamlined business procedures like procurement, travel, finance and others, moves that saved $5 million last year, $20 million this year, and will save an estimated $50 million a year in the future. Potential future assets include Don Scott Airport, the University golf course and others, like University-owned farms and fields located across the state.

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: Last year Pittsburgh’s City Council rejected Mayor Luke Ravenstahl’s attempt to bolster the Steel City’s public employee pension fund by leasing its dozen-garage and 9,000-meter parking system in exchange for an upfront payment of $452 million (double the $220 million cash they needed to reach 50% funding of the pension fund). Mayor Ravenstahl’s privatization plan also included $440 million in parking system upgrades over the term of the proposed 50-year lease, with $90 million of that coming in the first seven to ten years, according to a January 21, 2011 article in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Instead, the council bailed out the pension fund by appropriating 31 years of parking tax revenue ($13.4 million annually through 2017, then $26.7 million annually through 2041 according to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review) to shore up the fund. This decision is forcing the Pittsburgh Parking Authority to find new money to study the structural needs of four parking garages and replace 1,200 parking meters. David Onorato, executive director of the Pittsburgh Parking Authority, said in January that raising meter rates and issuing new bonds might fund these improvements.

This past May, City Councilman Ricky Burgess wrote a letter to Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett that reignited talks of parking meter privatization. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported on May 31 that in the letter, “[Burgess] suggested the Intergovernmental Cooperation Authority, one of two state-appointed boards overseeing city finances, be empowered to market the city’s parking garages and meters if the council doesn’t approve its own deal by December 31, 2011.” [17] Burgess wrote:

It is clear that Pittsburgh can no longer be left to its own devices. The city council’ s actions last year regarding the health of the pension were a dereliction of duty and one that places the city in the gravest financial danger. The plan passed by the city council has already put a hole in the city’ s operating and capital budgets for nearly the next half-decade, with no guarantee of its viability or prospects for success. [18]

The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports the fund is presently valued at 34% of its $1 billion in outstanding obligations for 7,000 retirees and employees. If state officials deem the pension funding level is inadequate then they would be forced to take over the city’s finances.

Boston, Massachusetts: Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) officials face a projected $100 million budget deficit for Boston’s T rail line in FY 2012, according to a January 2011 article in The Boston Globe. Paul Regan, executive director of the MBTA Advisory Board, explained at the time that sales tax revenue established a decade ago has not been enough to offset debt payments like those incurred from expansion projects on Beacon Hill.

The agency owes $450 million in principal and interest payments this year, and those payments will rise each following year topping out at $575 million in FY 2016. Jonathan R. Davis, MBTA’s deputy general manager and chief financial officer, told The Boston Globe that MBTA owns 46,000 parking spaces in 100 garages and lots. A private company-paid a flat fee that generates $30 million in annual proceeds for the city-currently manages all the spaces.

MBTA is seeking to avoid fare increase and service cuts by exploring selling long-term parking revenue for an upfront payment of as much as $325 million. Under one proposed option, T officials could establish a subsidiary to sell most or all of the projected revenue for a medium-term contract (20-25 years). T officials would retain control over garages and lots, the ability to set parking fees, and would collect any surplus revenue exceeding the contract agreement. This move is one that could be coupled with a variety of cost savings measures (such as moving to one operator on the Red Line, automating parking lot revenue collection and transferring employees on health insurance to a state insurance plan.)

General Manager Richard A. Davey explained the moves to the Department of Transportation’s finance committee saying, “Our number one priority is to deliver a balanced budget without fare increases and service cuts, and we’re looking under every cushion we can, to find every nickel to do that.” [19] However, Project Finance reports MBTA decided to instead issue a single RFP in May 2011 for a 50-year lease or sale of its North Station Parking Garage, requesting bids of at least $65 million to lease it, or at least $70 million to buy it.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: The city of Philadelphia has several years left on its operating contract with the Philadelphia Parking Authority, but as the city grapples with budget deficits lawmakers have discussed leasing or selling the city’s 14,500 parking meters. NewsWorks reported on April 4, 2011 that City Councilman Darrell Clarke proposed the idea at a recent budget hearing, saying:

The revenue that we get from the sale of the actual meters would allow us to infuse a significant amount of cash to pay down the debt service on some of the significant debt that we have within our government. [20]

Even though the city’s current deal doesn’t expire until 2014, this is an opportunity for Philadelphia to join the ranks of other major U.S. cities considering parking asset privatization.

Memphis, Tennessee: This spring Memphis Mayor A.C. Wharton proposed leasing the city’s parking meters for an upfront payment of $10-15 million to Gates Group Capital Partners, according to an April article in The Commercial Appeal. ConsulPark Inc., a private sector on-street parking consulting firm, found that the city could increase revenue from $1.2 million to over $5 million per year by following a series of recommendations for the 1,250-meter parking system. Recommendations include:

  • Repairing 60 (out of 774) downtown meters that are missing meter heads and/or poles costing the city $35,000 in lost revenue each year;
  • Adding 300 metered parking spaces that could bring in over $200,000 in additional annual revenue;
  • Installing new electronic meters that accept credit and debit cards that have increased revenue by 30-70% in different cities;
  • Hiring more enforcement officers to cover night and weekend hours; and lastly,
  • Raising meter rates; ConsulPark found Memphis’ rates are much lower than comparable cities like Nashville and Charlotte.

Newport Beach, California: The Newport Beach City Council unanimously voted in March to privatize parking meter operations and enforcement signing a seven-year contract with Central Parking System. Under the contract the city is ensured its previous $3 million annual profit from the meters. The next $1.1 million in annual revenue, up to $4.1 million, goes to Central Parking System. Finally, the city receives 88.5% of revenue for each additional dollar exceeding $4.1 million, which drops down to 78.5% after the fifth year of the contract. The private operator is also investing $2.5 million in 2,600 new meters (capable of processing credit cards and pay-by-phone) that will remain city property after the contract expires. Additionally, Central Parking System is responsible for enforcing parking meter violations, but all proceeds from violations go directly to the city.

Toledo-Lucas County, Ohio: This past April the Toledo-Lucas County Port Authority again expressed interest in buying three Toledo-owned parking garages (Vistula, Superior and Port Lawrence) and meters, according to local news station ABC 13. This would be a public-to-public asset sale, however privatization remains a possibility. The Toledo Blade found that the parking authority made a similar proposal as recently as 2008, offering to buy all three garages and lease the meters in a 50-year, $16.5 million agreement. Former Mayor Finkbeiner rejected this proposal.

Currently managing the garages and meters is the Downtown Toledo Parking Authority, which is a nonprofit organization created by Downtown ToledoVision Inc. and the city in 1995, according to an April 29, 2011 article by the Toledo Blade. The Authority’s board of directors approved a bond inducement resolution this spring declaring they would consider issuing $6 million in bonds and borrowing $12 million from the Ohio Infrastructure Bank to purchase the assets.

In response, the city council voted to spend $15,000 to hire a financial advisor from Fifth Third Bank to evaluate the offer. While the true value of Toledo’s parking assets has not been publicly reported, the Toledo Free Press reports that the meters alone earned $412,000 in revenue in 2009. City Public Information Officer Jen Sorgenfrei confirmed the Port Authority’s interest, but told the Toledo Free Press on August 25, 2010, “There are no offers on the table, no price negotiations at this point.” [21] Partnering with a private concessionaire instead has not been ruled out, but as of press time that option appears unlikely.

Charleston County, South Carolina: County councilmembers in Charleston County are considering completing privatization of their parking garage network after privatizing most of the system in the 1990s. Two vestigial publicly operated garages remain in downtown Charleston that generate almost $500,000 in income each year, according to February 2011 reports by The Post and Courier. While the privately operated garages generate revenue for the city and one publicly operated facility is wholly owned, the county owes $4 million in debt on the second publicly operated facility and is about to spend over $2 million repairing the two publicly operated garages. Overall, the garages are estimated to sell for more than $33 million.

New Haven, Connecticut: The city of New Haven closed on a deal to lease the Broadway Island parking lot to Yale University for an upfront $3 million payment, according to a May report by the New Haven Register. The 99-year lease also requires the university to pay $1 rent to the city every year. This deal represents a continuation of an approach first adopted in 2009 when the Board of Aldermen approved a 99-year lease of Market Island and Begonia Island lots to the university for an upfront $400,000 payment (with $1 payments for the term of the lease). In accordance with the contract, Broadway Island will remain a commercial parking lot.

Hartford, Connecticut: The Hartford City Council voted to stop pursuing a 50-year lease agreement for almost 6,300 on-street and garage parking spaces, according to a March 2011 article in the Hartford Business Journal. Officials were seeking an upfront payment of $80-$120 million for the lease, which would have gone into a trust, according to an interview with David Panagore (Hartford’s Chief Operating Officer) in the Hartford Courant. The Hartford Business Journal reports that citizens opposed to the deal expressed concern the city would have squandered the upfront payment. [22]

Atlanta, Georgia: On October 1, 2009 the city signed a contract with Professional Account Management, LLC for parking management services, including management and operation of the city’s on-street parking program and the enforcement of regulations on behalf of the city. The agreement is one of several steps taken by PARKatlanta (a collaborative initiative led by the city’s Department of Public Works). However in 2008, prior to privatization, the city laid off 21 parking enforcement employees, according to a February 15, 2011 article in the Atlanta Journal Constitution. In February, the city’s Law Department recommended the city compensate those employees a total of $90,000.

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: Officials in Pennsylvania’s capital city have been considering privatizing parking assets since 2008, as Reason Foundation reported in Annual Privatization Report 2010: Local Government Privatization. Lawmakers’ attention has been consumed with handling the city’s pending municipal bankruptcy. However, on November 8 the mayor and city council agreed to sell the city’s incinerator and lease out parking garages in an agreement that could thwart a state takeover. The combined deals-if arranged and signed into law-could reportedly generate as much as $224 million in revenue for the city. For more on this, see Part 1 of this report (“Budgets, Bonds and Bankruptcies: Surveying the Landscape of Local Government”).

Pontiac, Michigan: Pontiac’s new emergency manager, Lou Schimmel, decided to remove all 276 publicly owned and operated parking meters in the city. According to city officials, the city spent $325,000 annually over the last two fiscal years maintaining the meters-an operation that actually lost the city money. The Detroit Free Press reports the city is exploring privatizing at least eight of twelve city-owned parking lots, and leasing the 300-space lot adjacent to the Phoenix Center parking structure. [23]

Hamilton County, Ohio: The Cincinnati Enquirer reported on April 18, 2011 that the Hamilton County Commissioners voted to study privatizing all 10 county-owned parking facilities (four garages and six open-air lots in downtown Cincinnati) that provide almost 6,000 spaces. Commissioner Chris Monzel sponsored the study citing county subsidies for the facilities exceeding $1 million each year. [24]

Harris Kenny is a policy analyst at Reason Foundation. A modified version of this article was published in Reason Foundation’s Annual Privatization Report 2011: Local Government report.


Notes

[1] Andrea Bernstein, “Cities Want to Cash in On Their Parking Spots,” National Public Radio: Marketplace, April 14, 2011.

[2] For background on Chicago’s parking meter privatization, see Reason Foundation’s Annual Privatization 2010: Local Government Privatization https://reason.org/news/show/annual-privatization-2010-local and Annual Privatization Report 2009 https://reason.org/news/show/annual-privatization-report-20-28.

[3] Mark Konkol, “Daley turns to parking meter reserve fund to put money back,” Chicago Sun-Times, April 14, 2011.

[4] Andrew Harris, “William Blair Wins Dismissal of Suit Over Chicago Parking Meter Contract,” Bloomberg, May 6, 2011.

[5]IBM Global Survey: Drivers Share Worldwide Parking Woes,” September 28, 2011.

[6] Eric Jaffe, “The Joy of Parking in Chicago,” The Atlantic, September 28, 2011.

[7]Mayor announces mixed-use Broad Ripple parking development,” City of Indianapolis, June 13, 2011.

[8] Henry Goldman, “New York City asks bankers to plumb parking meters, garages to add revenue,” Bloomberg, February 25, 2011.

[9] Ibid.

[10] Ibid.

[11] Dale Kasler, “Sacramento arena finance plan may hinge on privatizing parking spots,” The Sacramento Bee, September 12, 2011.

[12] Tony Bizjak, “Parking fees eyed for arena financing,” The Sacramento Bee, November 4, 2011.

[13] Tony Bizjak, “City says parking could play a key role in financing arena,” The Sacramento Bee, November 3, 2011.

[14] Ila Halai, “RFQ out for Sacramento parking lease,” Inspiratia.com, January 13, 2012.

[15] Josh Kosman, “NJ Transit parking plan derailed,” New York Post, July 15, 2011.

[16] Bill Bush, “OSU parking deal requires accurate projections,” The Columbus Dispatch, October 9, 2011.

[17] Joe Smydo, “Councilman trying to revive parking lease plan,” Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, May 31, 2011.

[18] Ibid.

[19] Eric Moskowitz, “MBTA considers selling future parking revenue,” The Boston Globe, January 5, 2011.

[20] Dave Davies, “Should Philadelphia sell its parking meters?” NewsWorks, April 4, 2011.

[21] Michael Stainbrook, “Port Authority interested in buying city parking garages and parking meters,” Toledo Free Press, August 25, 2010.

[22] Gregory Seay, “Hartford eyes $100M to outsource parking,” Hartford Business Journal, November 17, 2010.

[23] Bill Laitner, “Pontiac gets rid of parking meters downtown,” Detroit Free Press, November 8, 2011.

[24] “Commissioners: privatize county lots?” The Cincinnati Enquirer, April 18, 2011.