worked steadily with a parking-specific engineering firm and developed the program and requirements (POR), which included the projected size of the facility, including the footprint, siting, massing, layout, floor-to-floor heights, elevator locations, and entry/exit lane locations. In addition, working through the engineering firm that collected data and completed studies, we discovered the traffic limitations of the site would ultimately dictate the maximum size of the garage. To have this comprehensive data and information in hand when the architect came calling was invaluable.
Doing Research The preliminary layout focused on the use of LED lighting, openair stairwells and elevator banks, one-way angled drive lanes, and a parking guidance system (PGS). We went a step further and researched the PGS, conducted site visits to review products, and even hosted a pilot installation to determine which vendor best met our needs. Completing all this work and data collection in advance of the project served us well—we were ready with pertinent information and specific details in hand when an architect was assigned. It would not have been possible to collect so much information and detail within the constraints of the imposed ninemonth construction timeframe.
The Specifics Our request included cast-in-place concrete construction of the five-level garage, which came in just over our target at 1,426 spaces. Included in the garage are specialty spaces, including six golf-cart parking spaces complete with chargers and three level-2 electric vehicle charging stations. The PGS has ultrasonic sensors in each space, space availability indicators above each stall on the four lower levels, and electronic signs at each turning decision point that display the number of available spaces in each direction. The exterior facade boasts a combination of materials, including brick, burnished block, aluminum panels, and stainless steel mesh. The results are quite stunning. The transportation services team pressed to include some additional key components to enhance the user experience and improve functionality, including active and passive safety design elements, features to reduce maintenance needs and costs, and technical specifications important to our operational goals: ●● Open-air stairwells without doors and access to elevators without lobbies so no climate control was needed; these also opened the view to all areas for enhanced safety. ●● Unpainted concrete to reduce maintenance required for these surfaces.
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Eight-foot, two-inch clearance on all floors for better mobility and access. ●● Glass elevator cars and enclosures that allow views to and from outside. ●● Blue-light safety intercoms. ●● State-of the-art cameras with specified cabling requirements, intercom, and PGS with individual space sensors, plus parking guidance lights at each stall and signs at each decision point indicating available spaces in each direction. ●● High-tech command center with wall-to-wall flatscreen monitors. ●● Back-of-the-house needs for storage, break area, and laundry facilities. ●● No curbs (to reduce trip hazards). ●● LED lights throughout the facility. In addition to meeting the requests above, the developer and contractor gave tremendous leeway and opportunity to transportation services to provide critical input needed for specific wiring, camera, intercom, and gate-access equipment specifications and for the development of a signage plan for the garage. ●●
Partnership Is Key The key to our overall success throughout the project was in the partnership we developed with the construction team. We started by assembling a collaborative team of members from all facets of our operation who use, manage, maintain, allocate, host events, communicate about, and serve as ADA specialists for the department. Our committee employed several strategies to jump-start the decision-making process for signs before meeting with the development team. We met extensively as a group and also worked independently to scour each set of engineering plans for every level of the garage. This process was used to create a true-to-life placement list of each sign with symbols on the plans as a visual cross-reference to help ensure placement was accurate and nothing was missed. This layout plan was reviewed and updated on numerous occasions throughout the process. Our team used our diverse knowledge base and referenced plans from a garage built on campus in 2003 to help ensure nothing was overlooked. Additionally, before the start of the project, a photo catalog of pre-existing garage signage infrastructure was developed. This visual reference offered an opportunity to review materials, style, exact language, and many other design components to pick and choose what worked well and what was less effective, which was helpful throughout the process of designing the new sign package. Site visits were made to existing garages to reexamine signage placement and effectiveness, helping address signage needs for the new garage. Finally, a site visit to the new garage was sched-