What can you do if a landlord reduces your parking access?
On behalf of Kadish & Associates Law Group posted in Commercial Real Estate Disputes on Sunday, December 1, 2019.
While there are certainly people in Arizona who commute by foot or on bikes, the average person gets around in their own motor vehicle. As a business owner who welcomes customers into your space, providing adequate parking is critical to ensuring a steady flow of visitors to your business.
Unfortunately, if you lease your facility, access to parking may rely entirely on the goodwill of your landlord. Whether the issue is asphalt resurfacing that leads to the parking lot being closed for weeks or your landlord allocating too much parking to another tenant and leaving you without enough space, parking issues can quickly impact your staff and your business’ bottom line.
What does your lease say about parking?
Commercial leases are typically much more thorough than standard residential leases. You will likely have signed a clause that specifically addresses the number of parking spaces allocated to your business for use.
There may be priority parking directly in front of your business as well as a number of spaces farther back in the parking lot. If you no longer have access to the number of spaces promised in your lease, you may be able to ask your landlord to take action.
Taking action to protect your company
When a new, high-traffic tenant moves into a multi-unit commercial property, it can impact parking for everyone. Your landlord should either enforce parking restrictions or adjust the rent and lease terms for other tenants to reflect the reduction in parking availability.
Similarly, if your landlord closes part or all of the parking lot for multiple weeks during the summer for construction or resurfacing, you may have grounds to request a rent reduction. If they won’t work with you, you may need to take more aggressive actions such as holding your rent in escrow or seeking an early termination of your lease to find a space that better accommodates your company. Your attorney can help you determine what your legal options are.