How Coleman Parking Grew Revenue 30-40% with AirGarage

The Challenge

From the start, 111 Coleman's parking garage was a source of financial and operational pain. Equipment failures were frequent. During busy periods, 20 to 30 cars would stack up at the gates, leading to honking, frustration, and even 911 calls. In some cases, dispatchers told drivers to break the gate and leave, taking the rest of the day's revenue with them.

To keep traffic moving, the team stationed staff at the entrance just to get cars through the gates faster.

"In the first year we had a lot of lost revenue. It was hundreds of thousands of dollars."

The problems weren't just operational. The team had no reliable visibility into what was actually happening in the garage. Without data, making informed decisions about pricing or performance was impossible. Flesh and his partners knew they needed a different approach.

The Solution

Through an introduction from their equity partner, Flesh connected with AirGarage. His initial reaction was skepticism, as removing the gates entirely felt like an open invitation for revenue loss.

"Truthfully, my initial thought was resistance. I'm like, there's no gates. People are just going to leave."

What changed his mind was the data. Once the transition happened, loss dropped sharply, and the numbers made the case on their own.

AirGarage removed the outdated gate equipment and replaced it with a gateless system built on license plate recognition, mobile payments, and real-time enforcement. Drivers enter and exit freely, but the system tracks every vehicle and acts on violations.

"There's a picture of your license plate. They know who you are. They know how many times you violated and they take action."

Enforcement wasn't the only upgrade. AirGarage introduced dynamic pricing calibrated to the specific rhythms of the Chem Creek District, adjusting by day of week and season to capture more value when demand was high without alienating regulars during slower periods.

"It's not just one algorithm or one set of dynamics. We've been able to work with AirGarage to adjust to day of the week or by the seasonality of where we are."

For office tenants, the experience improved as well. Key fobs and access cards were eliminated. Tenants pull in, park, and the system handles the rest, including auto-starting sessions for returning visitors.

Flesh also gained direct access to performance data through AirGarage's dashboard: occupancy trends, repeat drivers, revenue by day, and real-time customer ratings.

"As an owner, I want to know who's parking here. I want to know how many repeat customers I have, the current rate, how much revenue came in. It's all at a touch of a fingertip."

The Results

In the first year, garage revenue increased 30-40%, and that growth has held.

"We saw a 30 to 40% increase in revenue in the garage in the first year and that's maintained itself moving forward. There's not been a fall off."

Congestion disappeared. Equipment failures became a non-issue. The team stopped spending time on gate management and started focusing on the asset itself.

Customer experience improved alongside the financials. Drivers adapted quickly to the gateless model and, when the garage filled during busy nights, were willing to pay more rather than hunt for parking elsewhere.

"We found our patrons didn't mind paying a little extra when it was harder to find a parking space."

For Flesh, the shift settled a question he'd been wrestling with: whether enforcement without gates was even possible.

"We became believers that you don't need the barricade, the gate. We're making more money without the gates and AirGarage in place."

The alignment of incentives has been as important as the technology.

"When we succeed, AirGarage succeeds. Your monetary success is tied to my monetary success. And that is a powerful driver for me."

‍

‍