Thinking Outside the Garage

Parking space is precious throughout the New York City metro area. One co-op in New Rochelle had a parking problem that was as knotty as a sheet of pine paneling: the co-op has 160 units, but its parking area can accommodate just 86 cars. To make matters worse, the co-op is located near Iona College, which sends an overflow of student drivers looking for scarce street parking.

What’s a board to do? Get creative.

“The board purchased a house nearby and plans to demolish it and put in a parking lot, adding roughly 26 to 30 spaces,” says the co-op’s property manager, Robert Ferrara, president and CEO of The Ferrara Management Group. “They’re still not going to have a space for every shareholder, but there’s an older population in the building and not everyone has a vehicle.”

The board decided to finance the house purchase, demolition, approvals and permits, and paving – just under $1 million total – from its reserve fund, meaning there was no assessment or maintenance increase.

“They’re paying themselves back with interest, with the charges that they’re going to be collecting for those additional spaces,” Ferrara says.

This creative solution to a knotty problem offers a lesson to all co-op and condo boards.

“You should always try thinking outside the box,” Ferrara advises. “Each property has a different situation that may be unique. If you think outside the box, you can really come up with some wonderful ways to get around a problem and make it more attractive for the shareholders who reside at that property.”

Sometimes, thinking outside the box means thinking outside the garage.