The undiscovered potential of parking lots

They're the first and last things a shopper sees, yet most retailers do little to improve them

The first and last impressions shoppers get of a store is the parking lot.

One might assume image-conscious retailers would work hard to ensure these customer impressions were good, but, in fact, most retailers do not give parking lots much attention at all.

That neglect may be changing today, both as a result of outside pressures and from the examples of innovative retailers who are looking at ways to make their lots more convenient and attractive to customers.

Local communities, for one, are becoming more vocal. Chicago's ordinance refers to the "urban island heat" that results from stretches of cement and asphalt--and the mayor has been urging businesses to fence lots and plant trees to reduce heat radiation.

Chicago's newly updated landscape ordinance, for example, outlines that city's priorities: "In a residential district, parking lots are unattractive intrusions that diminish the appearance and the value of the adjacent residential property. In a commercial district parking lots are the lifeblood of retail and other commercial activity, but they play a supporting, not a principal role, and should not be the dominant impression of a retail corridor or neighborhood district."

PROJECTING AN IMAGE

In other instances, retailers are taking the lead:

"The parking lot is your first impresson," said Mark Eckhouse, vice president at McCaffrey's Markets, which has supermarkets in the high-income communities of Yardley, Pa., and Princeton and West Windsor, N.J. "The appearance of our parking lots is consistent with the upscale image we want to create in the whole shopping experience and creates a buffer for our neighbors." In Princeton, he said, the market is located in a shopping center built around an attractive courtyard with rose garden.

Not just high-end retailers, but also some value-priced ones are aware that nicely presented parking lots can be good business. T. Cooper James & Associates, which builds, purchases, develops and manages strip shopping centers in North and South Carolina, considers landscaping of "paramount" importance. "We dress up property more than we should, but there's something called 'pride in construction,'" owner T. Cooper James explained.

A MATTER OF CONVENIENCE

The third group with a stake in how parking lots are designed is the shoppers themselves. While retailers have responded to customer concerns about safety by boosting light levels in parking lots, they have been less responsive to customer convenience issues, like separate parking for "grab-and-go" customers or "child zone" parking for shoppers with kids.

David McCue, president of McCue Corp., a supplier of cart corrals, covered walkways and other parking lot products, thinks the general lack of interest in parking lot improvements on the part of most retailers is related to their organizational structure.

"No one is in charge!" he said. Responsibility for the parking lot falls between any number of departments, including real estate, equipment purchasing, operations, store planning and marketing.

This is different from the way things work in Europe, he said, where retailers treat the parking lot as a marketing extension of the store. Some French hypermarkets, McCue noted, even have executives who are in charge of store exteriors.

Parking lot tips

* Easy access is key. Landscaping helps to attract customers, but can also create blind spots. "Access is our number one priority," said Tom Peterson, manager of civil and structural engineering for Eden Prairie, Minn.-based Design Services Group, Supervalu's inhouse design firm.

Safe and easy ingress and egress near a main intersection is of utmost importance; the firm develops an initial concept site plan for each location, identifying all access issues including separate truck entrances.

The planning process can take from a few months to three years, depending on many factors, including environmental considerations. Cities usually require a specific distance between entrances and exits, and 25 feet from intersections.

* Keep the walk short. Dean Strombom, vice president of Gensler/Houston, follows the "300-foot rule," which refers to the point beyond which no customer should ever have to park.

T. Cooper James & Associates always allows 5 to 10 percent more parking spaces than needed, having discovered it attracts shoppers. There is a basic subliminal response to a spacious, well-planned and landscaped parking lot, owner James said.

* Light well for security. Safety prohibits parking behind or on the sides of most stores, or in an isolated location. While security is critical, bright lights can also be a nuisance to neighbors.

"Light must be more than adequate to keep customers happy," said Mark Eckhouse, vice president at McCaffrey's Markets. "But to be conscious of nearby residences, it must be kept low."

Being mindful of light fixtures' cut-off angle, height and proximity to houses can help satisfy both concerns, according to Gensler's

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