by Alpen Storage | March 2020
Are you aware of the growing demand for bike storage by tenants? City dwellers and city planners alike from Boston to New York City to Los Angeles and beyond are looking for alternatives to the hour-long car commute. The answer has been sitting in front of us even longer than the automobile has been in existence. The humble bicycle’s stock is rising as increases in protected bike lanes and other cyclist-friendly infrastructure spread across the United States. Bike commuting is definitely on the rise in America’s cities. The League of American Bicyclists have recorded a 400% increase in cycling since 1990 in cities such as Washington DC and Portland. ALPEN Storage, Inc., designer of the premium ALPEN Bike Capsule, is paying close attention to the swell in enthusiasm for bicycle storage in urban centers.
Again and again, property management companies report that bike storage is one of the most requested amenities by tenants. The largest demographic bloc of renters at present are millennials, and millennials primarily look for amenities that add convenience or help preserve the health of their minds and bodies: secure package delivery, hot tubs, saunas, full-service fitness centers, and amenities for their pets such as bathing quarters and dog parks. The time of outdoor bike racks has passed. Bicycles these days can cost thousands of dollars: tenants are disinclined to risk their purchases outdoors overnight with a bike being stolen every thirty seconds in the United States. They want something better.
As tenants and prospective tenants ask more and more frequently about a residential building’s provision for cyclists, property managers increasingly offer bike lockers or other bicycle parking solutions. Floor space that may once have been reserved for parking garages and additional cars is now being given over to cyclists. Older buildings may already have unused ‘back-of-house’ space that can easily be pressed into use with a couple of days work cleaning, adding wall mounts, and the like. In cities like New York, times are changing: instead of simply providing the bare minimum of storage space for bikes required by a 2009 zoning amendment, many properties are going above and beyond.
There are many approaches that properties can take towards bike rooms. What tends to be most appreciated by tenants, though, are the following:
The ALPEN Bike Capsule is the future of bike storage, offering sleek, fully-enclosed protection for your tenants’ bicycles. No need for a bike room when you have ALPEN Bike Capsules: six Capsules can fit into a standard size parking spot and they can also be placed in otherwise unusable square footage, like behind pillars, under ramps or in small corners. The Bike Capsule is roomy, easily storing most bikes types, and comes with interior pegboards for organizing all your cycling gear. There is even an optional grommet allowing easy access for a charger cord so that e-bikes can be recharged overnight.
ALPEN Bike Capsules typically rent for $50-$100 per month, depending on the market, which is a nice incremental income stream that adds real property value.