Tag Archives for: The National Parking Association

NPA Announces 2016 Parking Consultants Council Annual Meeting New Workshop Offers Education for Parking Consultants of All Levels

February 08, 2016

Washington, DC (February 8, 2016)—The National Parking Association (NPA) will hold the 2016 Annual Meeting of its Parking Consultants Council (PCC) on February 19 and 20 at Le Meridien in Tampa, Fla. For the first time this year, NPA will open the two-day meeting with an educational workshop, “Winning the Bid,” geared towards parking consultants of all levels.

This workshop will be offered complimentary in 2016 and will cover two major topics important to consultants. Tom Szubka and Tom Wunk of T2 System will address strategies for preparing a winning RFP, and Leonard Carder, CPP of ABM Parking Services will help attendees better market themselves and their credentials to prospective clients.

“An important tenet of the NPA commitment to the parking & transportation industry is that we continually develop ways to foster the professional growth of industry experts and young leaders,” said NPA President Christine Banning, CAE. “NPA’s two-part ‘Winning the Bid Workshop’ is a complimentary program that provides an educational opportunity for up-and-coming parking consultants and introduces them to the Parking Consultants Council,” she added.

During the PCC welcome session, Mark Lyons, City of Sarasota, will lead a presentation on fulfilling client needs before the attendees break into working groups. On Saturday, PCC members will meet for a closed business session.

The PCC, formed in 1972, is an elite professional group within the National Parking Association. It is concerned with economic analysis, functional and structural design, financial counseling, research, analysis and maintenance of off-street parking facilities. Composed primarily of engineers and architects, these members produce a wide range of technical publications for the NPA.

About NPA: The National Parking Association is the nation’s leading parking trade group advancing the interests of the private and public sector in parking technology, sustainable mobility, certification, advocacy, research and education. Founded in 1951, NPA has more than 2,500 members and represents all facets of the parking industry. WeAreParking.org

NPA Launches Parking Professional Micro-Credentials Program

January 28, 2016

Parking Professionals Can Earn Certificates on human resources, safety and security, emergency preparedness

Washington, DC (January 28, 2016)—The National Parking Association (NPA) introduces a multi-year program of micro-credentials for developing critical skills in the parking industry. This credentialing program is for parking professionals to advance or refresh skills and competencies in key areas of parking management and operations.

Today, NPA launched the first certificate program focusing on human resources management. In the online certificate program, participants will learn how to effectively hire, orient, train and motivate employees through three learning modules: Hire Smart, Build Your Bench and Train to Culture. Parking professionals served as advisors developing the training with a focus on the parking and transportation industry. Courses are available online at WeAreParking.org in Training/Career.

NPA will release its second certificate program on emergency preparedness and disaster planning online in February. In addition, NPA will offer Emergency Preparedness certificate training in three hands-on, in-person courses at the 2016 NPA Convention & Expo, September 19-22 in Atlanta. Convention-goers who participate in these in-person seminars will be eligible to earn the emergency preparedness and disaster planning certificate.

This spring, NPA will introduce a customized certificate program on safety and security to foster parking safety knowledge and practices for employees, parkers and communities. This certificate will cover policy, procedure and management, facility safety standards, parking risk management and incident handling.

“NPA is pleased to bring 24/7 training on some of the most important areas of parking performance. The industry’s ability to attract talent, serve parkers and be good community stewards are of paramount importance to the future of parking,” said NPA president Christine Banning, MA, CAE. “Each certificate program will help parking organizations take a proactive and responsible stance as leaders, asset managers and community citizens.”

Each NPA credential program covers information in key subject areas of the internationally known Certified Parking Professional (CPP) designation, the highest parking industry credential of professionalism and standards in the industry.

National Parking Association Announces Winners of Brett Harwood Leadership Scholarship

January 15, 2016

Three Young Parking Professionals Awarded Funding to Attend Executive Leadership Forum

Washington, DC (January 15, 2016)—The National Parking Association (NPA) is happy to announce the winners of the 2016 Brett Harwood Leadership Scholarship: Tiffany Yu (Scheidt & Bachmann), Wen Sang (Smarking Inc.) and Theo Apanco-Perez (Towne Park).

Tiffany Yu, marketing specialist for Scheidt & Bachmann (Boston, MA) also serves as secretary on the Women in Parking Board of Directors. Tiffany approaches everything she does with a tireless energy and passion for social and ecological change.

Wen Sang is the founder and CEO of Smarking Inc. (Cambridge, MA), a parking technology company that helps parking operators boost revenue, improve operations and increase customer satisfaction. He earned his PhD in mechanical engineering from MIT in 2014.

Theo Apanco-Perez serves as human resources director for Towne Park (Annapolis, MD). Theo’s focus on relationship-building, work ethic and desire to serve has had a positive impact on Towne Park’s business and its people.

Brett Harwood is the founder of Park Equity LLC, and mentor to many in the parking industry. He generously sponsored the scholarship program, which is designed to afford up-and-coming professionals in the parking industry the opportunity to attend NPA’s Winter Leadership Forum. The scholarship is to be awarded to one member NPA’s 40 Under 40 program each year in 2016, 2017 and 2018.

Due to the quality of applications received this year, a second donor, David Damus of System Property Development Inc., offered to contribute funds to send two additional scholars.

“NPA is extremely proud to foster the leadership development of these young parking professionals. Their contributions will further promote innovation and growth in the industry,” said NPA President Christine Banning, MA, CAE. “We are grateful to both Brett Harwood and David Damus for their generous support, which makes this education scholarship possible.”

Scholarship recipients will join top parking professionals in Maui, January 30–February 4 at NPA’s Winter Leadership Forum. Here, they will learn from and meet with the leaders of the parking industry.

NPA Parking Consultants Council Releases Fifth Edition of Parking Facility Maintenance Manual

January 12, 2016

New technology highlighted in latest version of this best-selling publication

National Parking Association

Washington, DC (January 12, 2016)—The National Parking Association’s esteemed Parking Consultant’s Council released the fifth edition of its Parking Facility Maintenance Manual on December 24, 2015. The publication includes updates to the 1982, 1991, 1996 and 2003 editions.

The manual is the result of work led by the PCC’s Parking Facility Maintenance Committee, headed by committee co-chairs Adam Cochran, P.E. of Kimely-Horn Associates and Bill Judd, P.E. of THP Limited, Inc. Since the publication of the fourth edition, several technology changes have occurred, including Light Emitting Diode (LED) and induction lighting, new strategies for energy efficiency, sustainability and technical enhancements of parking equipment and how we pay for parking. In addition, the committee has also begun incorporating surface parking lot information into the manual, as these facilities comprise a major component to many parking inventories.

“The Parking Facility Maintenance Manual provides parking owners and operators with guidelines for maintaining a parking facility in a serviceable condition—one that minimizes safety hazards and creates a sustainable structure that extends the service life of the facility,” said NPA president Christina Banning.

The manual highlights the importance of establishing a site-specific maintenance program tailored to the requirements of each individual facility, including how proper maintenance begins during the initial planning and design phases of each facility. When a facility or structure is designed correctly, e.g. adequate drainage, proper concrete properties and asphalt coverage requirements, use of current soils and topography reports, use of the correct and sustainable products, etc., will sustain the facility and reduce on-going, long-lasting maintenance expenditures. This will reduce long-term expenses associated with overall maintenance of the facility.

The PCC’s objective for this publication is to present a comprehensive coverage of many common issues one might encounter during the maintenance of a parking facility. These approaches must be interpreted and applied as appropriate to specific facility requirements.

The Parking Facility Maintenance Manual is available for purchase in the NPA Bookstore at WeAreParking.org/bookstore.