Having lived in places where spots to leave your car can be hard to come by, Devin Bates knows the parking puzzle can be solved.
“A lot of people have extra parking, they just don’t know how to utilize it,” said Bates, one of the founders of ShareASpot.com.
ShareASpot aims to match people looking for parking with those hoping to rent out spots. After being in development for six months, the website launched about six weeks ago, Bates said.
Bates, of Forest Park, connected with friends James Nortier, of LaGrange Park, and Marcel Krawczyk, of Forest Park, and the three cofounders worked with a web developer to create the site.
Currently, the website focuses on Oak Park and Forest Park, Bates said, because parking can be challenging in those areas. Those interested in renting a spot can list it on the site; those in need of parking can search for available spots in either village.
The CTA’s Blue and Green lines that have stops in the villages certainly play a large part, drawing people looking to park somewhat near those stops. And overnight parking in both villages can be unpredictable, he said.
As of April 13, there were 150 active users on the site and 20 parking spots available for rent, Krawczyk said.
Parking options are presented in map view or list view, and renters can secure a spot daily or monthly. People can rent an extra parking spot or driveway; they can price spots as they wish, Bates said.
“We’re just trying to make it as simple as possible for people renting out the spots, as well as people looking for parking,” Bates said. “Parking seems to be more of a challenge in a lot of places, so we feel like it’s a really good time for this.”
Before expanding to Chicago and beyond, Bates said they’d like to have at least 50 spots for rent in Oak Park and Forest Park. Krawczyk said they wanted to focus on local areas that they know experience parking issues, to gain momentum before adding Chicago to the site.
Bates said there’s been a bit of a learning curve for people not used to renting their spot to a stranger. But as sharing economy sites like Airbnb and Uber have become more mainstream, people grow accustomed to the idea.
“I think it’s a millennial thing,” Bates said, of the growing popularity of sharing resources.
Unlike SpotHero.com — which has a national scope and focuses only on supplying parking, often in garages — ShareASpot aims to provide peer-to-peer parking with its ability to list or rent a spot, Bates said.
Krawczyk said they enthusiastically welcome user feedback, as they’re constantly trying to make the website easy to use and deliver as much value as possible.
“Every time we think we’ve made it as easy as possible, someone still proves we can make it easier,” he said.
For more information, visit http://www.shareaspot.com.
Caitlin Mullen is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
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