Parking lot blunders

So I'm starting very local. The parking lot at my health club (Lifetime Fitness) really bothers me...it may lead me to cancel my membership this winter. There is only one entrance to this huge square building (foreshadowing: long perimeter = long walks from your car), and the parking lot on that side of the building is tiny. The parking lots on the other three edges of the building are all huge. So, you already probably know what happens. Everyday people drive in and hunt for a parking lot close to the door. Traffic, congestion, frustration, etc. Then, the majority of us have to drive off to the nether worlds and find a spot in the other lots. Then we end up hauling our gym bags (and our overweight asses) way longer than should be necessary to get into the building.

On the scale of life's crises is this a big deal? No. Of course not. But did some architect get paid to lay out the building and design the parking lot and driveways? Yep (it was a newly constructed building). And did this architect realize it was for a health club in the Northern U.S. with cold winters, where people would be exiting sweaty and tired and potentially even with aches and pains? Yep! So, why did that architect do this to us? It's annoying and inconvenient in the warm summer months, but when you're walking to your car all sweaty in the cold Chicago winter, it'll be downright awful. (And yes, I have already heard the "why are you complaining about walking when you're going to work out?" To that I say I'm complaining about walking in the heat or cold after I've already worked out and am sweaty and sore.) On top of that, I have a feeling that the employees all park in the prime spots--not verified, but, if true, even worse!

So, what good does this blog do? Nothing really except somehow make me feel better. What else can I do? I could tell the manager, but right now I'm focusing on winning a battle that is more controllable for him, namely getting him to keep the gross washrooms clean. Overloading him with complaints would probably just discredit me as a pathological whiner. Suggesting they open another entrance (the only somewhat affordable solution) is also just too unlikely to come to fruition--I can already imagine the operational issues and costs associated. What I really should do is contact Lifetime Fitness HQ and tell them so they can avoid this in the future...and unless there is some massively major reason for the design as it is, they should fire their architect. Stay tuned, maybe I will.

But this is just one example of bad parking lots. Other issues are over landscaped lots, with excessive curves and gardening that limits the spots by halves or thirds. Is it really that important to have curvy parking lots with lots of flowers? Maybe it is for some, but it comes at a cost. More driving around in the lot, more walking, and more time wasted. I guess it can provide a better feel, but aren't there other ways to do that? Maybe paint the asphalt cool colors? Have hanging shrubbery from the light posts? Who knows. All I know is that the trend for parking lots is making it more and more of a hassle.

So, keep your eyes open during your next parking experience, my brethren. And let me know if you agree or disagree. There are some great parking lots out there--you might be taking them for granted. Don't. It may seem like a small thing, but it affects everyone who comes to that location!

PS: Don't get the wrong idea, Lifetime is a pretty good gym except for the parking lot and the bathroom issues.

What's your motivation?

I seem to get annoyed by a surprising amount of things. Poor design, bad processes, blatant stupidity...and the list goes on. Sometimes it comes out as an exasperated chuckle, like "wow what a stupid mistake"...and sometimes the frustration meter gets close to Bruce Banner levels. I think I get annoyed because I'm impatient and in some weird way a wanna-be "disciple of efficiency." I guess I just want things to be "right"...and I get annoyed when society's collective time or money are wasted from stupid mistakes or lack of innovation. So, in the hopes that some of you may agree with me and find an occasional post interesting or possibly even funny, I'll give this whole 'blogging' thing a shot. On the upside, maybe I'll get a few "a-mens" along the way...or on the downside, maybe I'll just get a lot of people to think I'm crazy. You be the judge.