We have some exciting updates to share with you about the hospitality and parking industries in Chicago.

First off, hotels in Chicago are expecting a better year for group business in 2023 compared to 2022 and Q1 of 2023 has already outpaced last year in terms of rooms. Additionally, the Chicago Auto Show made a comeback in 2023 with pre-pandemic exhibit space in McCormick Place, resulting in the best showing since 2019. The occupancy forecast for 2023 is mid to upper 60’s and the St. Regis Chicago Hotel is set to open in April 2023. Plus, we are proud to announce that the Trump International Hotel & Tower has received Forbes Travel Guide Five-Star Awards for both its hotel and restaurant, sixteen.

On the parking side of things, we are happy to report that we saw an increase in volume during the Chicago Auto Show in February by utilizing space at both the South Lot and Waldron Deck. In addition, we installed new equipment to improve efficiency and customer satisfaction, which has already shown promise during busier days such as the Christmas holidays. As for events at Soldier Field, we kicked off the Fire soccer season this past March, which will be followed by major concerts by popular performers such as Taylor Swift and Beyonce. Northerly Island will also be making a return in June with a substantial lineup of shows at the Huntington Bank Pavilion. Plus, we expect museum attendance to steadily increase over the next few months, particularly during the summer break.

Moving on to the office space industry, we have seen waves of tenants returning to work with a hybrid work schedule resulting in Tuesday through Thursday having the highest occupancy in our garages. Office building occupancy in Chicago is currently hovering around 50%, with 70-80% occupancy in most of our office building garages Tuesday through Thursday. Monthly parking revenues have not seen a significant increase, but we have seen larger growth in our transient and online revenues and transactions. As a result, many office tenants are looking for flexible parking solutions such as tenant group parking, specific tenant discounted daily rates, and pre-paid debit programs.

Finally, we have seen variances in revenues when comparing the office property garages in the loop and the garages with more leisure in the area such as hotels and restaurants. Garages in areas with hotels, restaurants, and leisure have exceeded 2019 revenues in many cases. We have also been able to begin raising parking rates in Q4 2022 and Q1 2023, with online rates increasing and some high volume garages seeing an increase in monthly parking rates. Additionally, many residential buildings are looking into the process, cost, and viability of installing electric vehicle chargers for the future. SP+ has relationships with EV charging companies that can help owners with the immediate need of installing a few chargers, but older condominiums may lack the infrastructure to handle adding a significant number of EV chargers for the future. It’s important to get started on this process sooner rather than later, especially considering potential governmental regulations on building owners going forward.

We hope you found these updates informative and look forward to keeping you updated on the latest developments in the hospitality and parking industries in Chicago.