PARKING CONCEPTS INC. OF LOS ANGELES 1C - 2010

Home Browse Search

City of Santa Ana Valet Services Procedures Pa -e 3 operation that the staffing level be appropriate — too many valet attendants and the operation is a financial sinkhole; too few, and the service level is unsatisfactory. Planning the staff size is essential. We will review how to do this, but it is also important to recognize that a valet operation has several different positions. Regardless of whether the operation is curbside at a restaurant or attending to a large banquet at a five star hotel, the set -up is the same. There should always be someone assigned to greet the arriving vehicles, open the vehicles' doors, and hand over the claim ticket to the patron. In small operations, this task can be accomplished by rotating valet attendants; in larger operations, it usually is a specific assignment and often referred to as the point or drive position. In addition, there should always be someone assigned to the porte cochere whose duty it is to meet the departing patrons and take their claim tickets. This person is responsible for beginning the vehicle retrieval process and collecting any charges associated with the valet parking. Some very large valet operations, such as those for special events, airports, or sizeable hotels, have additional positions such as checkers, who verify the locations of parked vehicles; key dispatchers, who arrange for the vehicles to be retrieved; and greeters, whose responsibilities include opening passenger doors and assisting with arriving patrons. Finally there is the position of valet attendant, whose responsibility it is to park and retrieve patrons' vehicles. This is the position that requires the greatest attention in planning and scheduling. Scheduling valet attendants should be based on the following two factors: • Hourly activity levels for both arriving and departing patrons, and • Time needed to park and to retrieve vehicles. The following are the established and confirmed times required to park and retrieve vehicles at the Broadway Garage: Garage '. ° : .Phase alet''Sta[ ©ri.. . .`.. ..: rkin Ti, me g'- i.. itetrimg,Tirn Broadway One Broadway (between 2" and 3` Streets) 1.25 — 2 minutes 3 —3.75 minutes Sycamore (between 2" and 3` Streets) 3.75 —4.5 min 1.5 —2.25 min In the above time trials, there are a range of 4.25 minutes to 6.75 minutes in parking and retrieving a vehicle. Assuming that each valet attendant works 50 minutes per hour, we have prepared the table below detailing each individual valet's hourly capacity. There are some variances to be aware of. Often, in busy times, valet attendants are able to reduce times and improve efficiencies by driving a recently arrived vehicle, parking it close to the spot where a claimed vehicle is already parked, and then getting into that vehicle to return to the porte cochere and to the patron. However, to be safe, and avoid understaffing and service shortfalls, it is always preferred to base calculations on the parking and retrievals necessitating valets to make one leg of the trip on foot. An adequate staffing level would require three attendants per station. Garage Broadway _ Phase;; One :1 alet Station ..: �, Broadway (between 2" and 3` Streets) Cars'per Hour per Valet 8-11 Sycamore (between 2" and 3` Streets) 7-9 Note: For the Art Walk on December 4, 2010, we will deliberately over staff, as this will be the first valet services exposure for the City and patron activity may exceed anticipated quantities.