Detroit Parking Lots Are Charging $1K Per Spot Ahead of NFL Playoff Game

Apparently, an important sportsball game is happening in Detroit today. So seemingly significant is this event that parking lots were charging jacked-up prices of nearly $1,000. Or they tried to. City officials quickly shut down their operations before a county judge later reversed the call.

Those who follow ‘murican football (including F1 champ Lewis Hamilton) know the NFL playoffs continue this weekend. One team getting a bit of attention is the Detroit Lions, who, for those unfamiliar, have never, ever, ever gone to the Super Bowl championship game. But under a new coach and newfound energy, Detroit was one win away last year and are favorites to reach the big game this season, if not win it outright. 

Look, to a generation or two, the Lions being a championship-caliber team is just plain weird. A Twilight Zone-level of mixed emotions, including everything from cheer and fear. Ask any Detroiter and adjacent sympathizer. Hence, the maddening scramble for t-shirts, tickets, and parking spots. And, as free markets go, why not charge an absurd amount for all of it?

A thousand bucks for parking sounds about right since game tickets cost almost as much. According to ESPN, the average price is $855. That makes today’s matchup between Detroit and Washington the third-most expensive ticket for a playoff game since 2010. Uh, that’s more than my rent for a two-bedroom apartment in Ypsilanti.

According to the Detroit News, three parking lots leased by Park Rite took advantage of the demand and began charging $999 per spot. All three are located within a block of each other in Downtown Detroit but are, most importantly, a five-minute walk from Ford Field, where the Lions play. City officials caught on, though, and suspended their operators’ licenses first thing yesterday morning. 

“Our people looked online and saw that these three lots were charging far above the rate schedule they submitted to us, which was $10 to $100 per space,” said David Bell, director of the Detroit Buildings, Safety Engineering, and Environmental Department.

But that shutdown was short-lived when a county judge ordered them to be reopened. Why? Because people needed the parking spaces, not empty parking lots. 

As of yesterday, the three reopened lots were charging $140-150, which is still higher than the agreed-upon rate and prices at other lots. A city attorney did file complaints against the lots, citing similar markups during last year’s home playoff game. However, a Park Rite attorney claimed the prices were an accident. Attorney Michael Vogt said the inflated rates shown on the Spot Hero parking app were an internal placeholder that was inadvertently listed for the public.

To be fair, no one actually reserved the exorbitant-priced parking spots.

“[Park Rite] said it was a mistake, they’ve corrected the mistake,” said Wayne County Circuit Court Judge David J. Allen. “At this point, let’s get the lots open today for folks who work in the [nearby 36th District Court] courthouse and other folks who want to use those lots, and let’s open up charging the rates that are acknowledged.”

For now, city officials are satisfied but have a warning for Park Rite and others.

“While the judge ruled against the closures we had requested, our proactive efforts have let all parking lot owners know that we are watching,” said Bell in a statement. “This is an important reminder to all parking operations to follow the rules and to parking lot users to know that the city is out here working to protect them.”

Now that the city knows the taste of victory, you can’t blame it for wanting more. I’ll personally always have a soft spot for Detroit but today, even though my head says otherwise, my heart, likely to be broken, says, go Washington.

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