In 1983, at the age of 21, Penn Parking’s president Lisa Renshaw took over her first property, a failing parking garage just north of Amtrak’s Penn Station in Baltimore, Maryland. Unable to afford employees, but needing an attendant 24 hours a day, Lisa moved into the garage, using a carpet remnant for a bed and a kerosene heater for warmth. For Lisa, parking, washing and waxing cars was the easy part; the challenge was combating rodents and shoveling snow at 4:30 A.M. so that her customers could enter the garage. After three and a half years of determination and spirit, Penn Parking took over its second location. Lisa moved out of the 10 X 10 room that had become her home.
Since its humble roots, Penn Parking has established a reputation as an innovator in the otherwise staid world of parking operations. Penn Parking has received considerable attention in the national and local media, for the company’s creativity, innovative marketing strategies, and reporting. Profiles have appeared in Reader’s Digest, Inc., Success, the Baltimore Sun, Warfield’s, the Washington Times and Good Housekeeping, to name only a few.
Penn Parking currently operates more than forty-five (45) parking facilities throughout Baltimore, D.C. and Virginia. Penn Parking is a dynamic force in the competitive arena of parking management. The diversity of the company’s experience ranges from management of full service contracts, valet, self park, and shuttle to cashier only or special event contracts. Penn Parking has established an unblemished reputation for superior service at competitive prices. Expert in managing overhead, the company is highly adaptable to new markets and to changes in the marketplace. In an industry known only for parking cars, Penn Parking has distinguished itself by its unique and creative approach in a very traditional industry.