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Parking Lot Maintenance Business Guide

By Jeff B.

sampleAbout The Author:

I was in the right place at the right time. I was working for a water delivery company at the time and I was thinking about working part time somewhere to make some extra money. I was making a delivery to a locksmith in a small strip center and he happened to be the person on site that you could talk to if you wanted to rent a unit. While I was in making the delivery I heard this person tell him this would be the last time he could take care of the parking lot. I went out to the truck to bring in some water and this gentleman had left so I asked the locksmith what was the job of taking care of the parking lot and could I apply for the job. He explained that you work for yourself and come in after hours 2 times a week to take care of the parking lot and walkways. I asked if I could start doing the parking lot maintenance for him. He put me in touch with the owner of the plaza and I started cleaning my first parking lot.

I had been doing this one lot for about 6 months when I decided to quit my delivery job and go into the parking lot maintenance business full time. I asked the owner of the property if he could recommend me to anyone else he might know. He said he knew the owner of the strip center next to his and would give him a call. I received a call the next day to meet with the owner of that property and before you knew it I was cleaning 3 lots a night 6 days a week.

The parking lot maintenance business is a great business to start part time and build into a full time business. It can be started for under $500.00 and you will end up spending around $2500.00 as you start to expand.  If I can do it you can do it.

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Advertising Your Parking Lot Maintenance Business:

As I said in previous sections I never did much in the way of advertising. The things I did do starting out that worked well and cost very little were.

I spent a few bucks on a tri-fold brochure I purchased the ones you can print yourself from Staples. If you have Microsoft word you can create the whole brochure and print out a professional look. You can also use postcards but the brochure looks much more professional and will impress the people you send them to.

What you want to do is drive around looking for parking lots that have 100 spaces or less. These are the size parking lots that the large companies don’t usually mess with. Look for buildings with the higher end businesses. They don’t all have to be high end but if they have a few the property owner is more likely to take care of their investment because they have solid renters who pay. They are also more likely not to have a property management service taking care of their property.

  1. Law firms
  2. Title companies
  3. Insurance companies
  4. Nicer restaurants
  5. Day Spa
  6. Exercise places
  7. Specialty clothes  

When you find them right down the address of the plaza or building so you can look up the owner on the computer when you get home. Most cities now give people access to their tax roll data bases. Look up the address find the owner and send them a brochure. Make sure you have your parking lot maintenance services and prices in the brochure along with your website and contact information. On your website, have detailed information about your services so they can see what you have to offer. In this day and age most people like to do their own research instead of being hounded by sales people.

I also joined the local chamber of commerce. This was a great spot to drum up business. Every one there is in business and either have their own building or know the owner’s address of who they rent from.

Choosing Your Business Name

Make sure you choose your name carefully. I chose the parking lot guy because that is what everyone always called me when I would run into one of the people who worked in that first strip center I started cleaning. So the name just made sense to me. I never did any advertising other than business cards and word of mouth. This is why I suggest choosing a catchy name. I would also recommend getting a simple website because people will remember your name and look it up on the web to get your phone number. So when you choose a name make sure it is available as a domain name. I no longer clean parking lots because we moved and I do not need the income at this time. I sold the business to one of my friends kids but I kept the name incase I ever needed to do this again. If you go to http://parkinglotguy.com you will see it sends you here to howothersdidit.net. I’m trying to support them and if someone needs a referral they will be able to look it up in their business listing section. I felt it was such a good name I didn’t want to part with it so until I decide to start this business again I will just keep it pointed here.

Make sure you have either a magnetic sign or permanent sign on your vehicle this is great advertising. You be surprised at how many calls you get from your magnetic signs. Business cards are the best and cheapest advertising you can do. They have a link at the bottom of this page Vista Print where you can get 250 business cards for free to get you started. Just keep the cards easy to read and simple. Just your business name, web address and contact info. This is why if you choose a good name even if they lose the card they will remember your name.

Equipment & Supplies

The Basics you need starting out.

  1. Truck or van I prefer a van because you can lock up your tools.
  2. Brooms
  3. Gas blower
  4. Flat shovels
  5. Short handle sledge hammer to drive in stakes that hold down the parking curbs
  6. Assorted pliers and screwdrivers
  7. Squeegee broom for moving water
  8. Tape measure
  9. 3 and 4 inch pain roller
  10. 3 and 4 inch paint brushes
  11. Dolly to move the parking curbs
  12. A suction cup light extension pole to change flood bulbs that are too high to reach.
  13. 8 ft. ladder
  14. A couple of 5 gallon buckets to throw rags or trash in.
  15. Garbage bags
  16. Paint roller extension
  17. Stencils
  18. A portable paint striping machine (Home Depot has a real cheap one I think $100.00 to get you started).
  19. Ant killer
  20. Weed killer
  21. Paint

The next step up:

  1. Hand Pump Striper 
  2. Billy Goat this will pick up your litter and leaves.
  3. Parking signs
  4. Parking stencils
Services & What to Charge:

Basic package Parking lot cleaning

  1. Pick up all trash in lot and planters.
  2. Vacuum / sweep complete paved or concrete lot.
  3. Kill any weeds growing through pavement or concrete.
  4. Keep all standing signs clean
  5. Kill ant mounds  Exterior hallways, stairwells and sidewalk cleaning
  6. Pick up all trash
  7. Blow off all dirt
  8. Shake out any entrance rugs
  9. Empty trash cans and ashtrays
  10. Remove gum
  11. Remove spider webs and bee hives
  12. Re-place light bulbs in hallways and stairwells

I come out two times a week before or after business hours.

I charge $200.00 per month or $50.00 per week (21 to 50 spaces)

I charge $140.00 per month or $35.00 per week. (5 to 20 spaces)

Other Charges

  1. When re striping a parking lot I charge $10.00 per parking space
  2. When replacing parking curbs I charge $20.00 plus the cost of the curb.
  3.  When I re paint handicap logo's I charge $20.00
  4. Paint curbs I charge $10.00 per curb
  5. Stencil signs on curbs I charge $10.00 per curb
  6. Install signs on existing pole $10.00 install sign and pole $25.00
  7. Patch a small pot hole $25.00 plus materials
  8. Install speed pre formed speed bumps $30.00 plus cost of speed bump.
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Helpful Tips:

Parking Lot Cleaning

  1. Always try and clean the lot early morning or late night
  2. Always kill the weeds and will make the lot look cleaner
  3. Make sure you pick up garbage that is in the planters and medians. Going the extra mile is why you will be successful.
  4. Sweep off outside walkways

Paint Striping

  1. Always blow of the stripes before painting them
  2. I use a stand up dolly to move curbs around
  3. Keep yellow, blue, white and black paint on hand. The black is to cover up any mistakes
  4. Keep a paint roller and can of paint to paint lines you can't use the machine on
  5. I always do the first one or two spaces for free if possible so they can look at them. It helps sell the job
  6. I always get paid when the job is done unless it is a monthly account then I bill once a month
  7. Always break down the bill listing everything you did. Like, blow off parking area, Painted 10 spaces 20 lines two coats each, straighten parking curbs re painted handicap logo's etc...

U.S. Department of Justice
Civil Rights Division
Disability Rights Section
(Seal of the Department of Justice)
ADA Design Guide 1 - Re-striping Parking Lots    

Accessible Parking Spaces

When a business, State or local government agency, or other covered entity re stripes a parking lot, it must provide accessible parking spaces as required by the ADA Standards for Accessible Design. Failure to do so would violate the ADA.

In addition, businesses or privately owned facilities that provide goods or services to the public have a continuing ADA obligation to remove barriers to access in existing parking lots when it is readily achievable to do so. Because re-striping is relatively inexpensive, it is readily achievable in most cases.

This ADA Design Guide provides key information about how to create accessible car and van spaces and how many spaces to provide when parking lots are re-striped.

(Illustration showing a woman getting out of the driver's side of a car into a manual wheelchair)  

Accessible Parking Spaces for Cars

Accessible parking spaces for cars have at least a 60-inch-wide access aisle located adjacent to the designated parking space. The access aisle is just wide enough to permit a person using a wheelchair to enter or exit the car. These parking spaces are identified with a sign and located on level ground.  

Van-Accessible Parking Spaces

Van-accessible parking spaces are the same as accessible parking spaces for cars except for three features needed for vans:

A wider access aisle (96") to accommodate a wheelchair lift; vertical clearance to accommodate van height at the van parking space, the adjacent access aisle, and on the vehicular route to and from the van-accessible space, and an additional sign that identifies the parking spaces as "van accessible." 

One of eight accessible parking spaces, but always at least one, must be van-accessible. (Illustration showing a van with a side-mounted wheelchair lift lowered onto a marked access aisle at a van-accessible parking space. A person using a wheelchair is getting out of the van. A dashed line shows the route from the lift to the sidewalk.)  

Features of Accessible Parking Spaces for Cars

(Plan drawing showing an accessible parking space for cars with a 96 inch wide designated parking space, a 60 inch wide min. marked access aisle and the following notes)

Sign with the international symbol of accessibility mounted high enough so it can be seen while a vehicle is parked in the space.

If the accessible route is located in front of the space, install wheel stops to keep vehicles from reducing width below 36 inches.

Access aisle of at least 60-inch width must be level (1:50 maximum slope in all directions), be the same length as the adjacent parking space(s) it serves and must connect to an accessible route to the building. Ramps must not extend into the access aisle.

Boundary of the access aisle must be marked. The end may be a squared or curved shape.

Two parking spaces may share an access aisle.

Three Additional Features for Van-Accessible Parking Spaces

(Plan drawing showing a van-accessible parking space with a 96 inch wide designated parking space, a 96 inch wide min. marked access aisle and the following notes)

Sign with "van accessible" and the international symbol of accessibility mounted high enough so the sign can be seen when a vehicle is parked in the space

96" min. width access aisle, level (max. slope 1:50 in all directions), located beside the van parking space

Min. 98-inch-high clearance at van parking space, access aisle, and on vehicular route to and from van space

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