# Pricing and Lot Admin

<p class="callout info">The Pricing and Lot Admin page is a central management tool for administrators to create new parking lots, define their characteristics, and configure pricing and permit settings. Its primary purpose is to allow comprehensive control over lot visibility, access, permit types, and advanced features, helping efficiently manage parking inventory. This article is intended for OPS-COM administrators.</p>

## Setup and Configuration

Creating and configuring parking lots is divided into several detailed tabs within the lot editor.

<p class="callout success">Before setting up new lots, consider your organization's permit types, pricing structures, and any specific access restrictions (e.g., faculty-only lots, temporary parking areas).</p>

### Accessing the Lot Editor

1. Hover over **Parking Management**, hover over **Lot Administration**, and click **Pricing &amp; Lot Admin**.
2. Click the **Add Lot** button to create a new configuration, or click an existing **Lot Name** link to modify it.

### General Tab

1. Enable the **This lot is archived** checkbox to safely archive the lot, making it unavailable for new sales while retaining historical data.
2. Select an option from the **[Visibility to Users](https://opscom.wiki/books/the-opscom-admin-portal/page/lot-visibility-options)** drop-down menu (e.g., Visible, Not Visible, or Hidden but Accessible).
3. Enter the full, descriptive name for the lot in the **Lot Name** field.
4. Enter an abbreviated name in the **Lot Short Name** field.
5. Group similar lots together using the **[Lot Group](https://opscom.wiki/books/setup-configuration-for-admins/page/lot-groups-management)** feature to display them as a single entity.
6. Choose **[Common Lot](https://opscom.wiki/books/setup-configuration-for-admins/page/common-lots)** to allow any user type to park, or choose **[User Type Lot](https://opscom.wiki/books/setup-configuration-for-admins/page/user-types)** to restrict access (hold the **Ctrl** key to select multiple allowed user types).
7. Enter a **[Lot Password](https://opscom.wiki/books/the-opscom-admin-portal/page/lot-passwords)** to prevent users from booking a permit unless they have the required code.
8. Fill out the **Special Parking Spaces** section if your lot has dedicated spots like EV charging or ADA spaces.
9. Click the **Update Lot** button to save changes.

### Zone &amp; Location Tab

1. Enter a description of the lot's physical location in the **Location Description** field.
2. Upload an **Image** to be displayed next to the lot name.
3. Configure a **Zone** for this lot by selecting a zone and specifying days or a range within the sales window.
4. Move or click **Create a Map Marker** in the **Map Detail** section to pinpoint the location and automatically populate GPS coordinates.
5. Click the **Update Lot** button to save changes.

### Standard Permits Section

1. Enter the base cost in the **Default Cost** field.
2. Choose **Enabled**, **Use Default Setting**, or **Disabled** for **Prorated Sales**.
3. Enable the **This lot can be used for a second permit** checkbox to allow users to purchase multiple permits for this lot.
4. Enable the **Allow the use of Waitlist with this lot** checkbox if you want the waitlist to be active.
5. Enable the **Only Allow Waitlist after lot is full** checkbox if you want a waitlist to activate only when permits are completely sold out.
6. Group multiple lots onto the same waitlist by entering a text value in the **Waitlist Lot Category** field.
7. Choose the applicable timeframe from the **Lot Sales Window** drop-down menu.
8. Enable the **Hang Tag Settings** if printing physical tags is required.
9. Click the **Update Lot** button to save changes.

<p class="callout info">If a user joins a waitlist that is part of a **Waitlist Lot Category**, they will automatically be added to all individual lot waitlists associated with that specific group and assigned the identical ranking. This ensures that if a permit becomes available in any one of those grouped lots, the user is eligible to purchase it.</p>

### Temporary Parking Tab

1. Enable the **This lot is for temporary parking only** checkbox if the lot is strictly exclusive to temporary parking.
2. Set the maximum number of daily temporary permits in the **Max Permits per Day** field.
3. Enable **Allow temp permits up to 30 days** or **Allow temp permits to be used over 30 days** under the **Permit Duration** settings. Disable these settings entirely if you do not wish to charge a daily fee.
4. Enable **Allow all vehicles on profile to receive the permit** to automatically apply the temporary permit to all vehicles on a user’s profile.
5. Enter the maximum fee for parking beyond 6 hours in the **Daily Cost** field.
6. Enter the hourly fee for parking in the **Hourly Costs** fields. If the lot has a flat rate, simply leave these fields blank.
7. Enter the monthly cost for parking permits that extend beyond 30 days in the **Over 30 Days Monthly Cost** field.
8. Enable the **Allow this lot to appear on the Real-Time Parking Map** checkbox to display the lot on the public map.
9. View, link to, download, print, or add a **Logo Image** to the **QR Code** directly from this section.
10. Click the **Update Lot** button to save changes.

### Flex Permits Tab

1. Enable the **Enable Flex Permits** checkbox.
2. Click the **Add New** button to create a new time slot with a specified price and color code.
3. Click the **Edit** button to modify existing time slots, pricing, or colors individually. Alternatively, use the Time Slot Chart and the **Select** button to click and drag time slot information to apply to multiple times and dates simultaneously.
4. Click the **Clear** button to quickly remove all pricing configurations, click **Fill** to populate the chart with uniform pricing, or click **Reload** to revert to previously saved settings.
5. Click the **Update Lot** button to save changes.

### Lot LPR Settings &amp; Additional Settings Tabs

1. Set a grace period in the **Free Parking Time** field during which patrons can register their license plate with a pay-by-plate meter without incurring a charge.
2. Enter the applicable integration data into the **Banner Detail Code** field (used strictly for the Banner system).
3. Click the **Update Lot** button to save changes.

## Using this Feature

Administrators use the main dashboard of the Pricing and Lot Admin page to view a high-level summary of all lot data and access specific administrative functions.

### Key Information Displayed

- **Lot Name:** The full name of the lot and its associated permit sales window.
- **User Types:** The specific user types permitted to book permits for the lot.
- **Visibility:** Indicates the lot's visibility to users (e.g., Not visible, Visible, Not visible but available).
- **Price:** The standard base price for permits in the lot.
- **Permit types:** Icons representing the types of permits enabled for the lot (e.g., standard,<span class="citation-1268 citation-1269 citation-1270 citation-end-1270"> temporary, flex).<sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="1"></sup></span><span class="citation-1268 citation-1269 citation-end-1269"><sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="2"></sup></span><span class="citation-1268 citation-end-1268"><sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="3"></sup></span>
- **<span class="citation-1265 citation-1266 citation-1267">Visible to User:</span>**<span class="citation-1265 citation-1266 citation-1267 citation-end-1267"> The number of permits in the lot currently available for user purchase.<sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="4"></sup></span><span class="citation-1265 citation-1266 citation-end-1266"><sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="5"></sup></span><span class="citation-1265 citation-end-1265"><sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="6"></sup></span>
- **<span class="citation-1262 citation-1263 citation-1264">Usage:</span>**<span class="citation-1262 citation-1263 citation-1264 citation-end-1264"> The number of permits currently booked or in use within the lot.<sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="7"></sup></span><span class="citation-1262 citation-1263 citation-end-1263"><sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="8"></sup></span><span class="citation-1262 citation-end-1262"><sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="9"></sup></span>

### <span class="citation-1259 citation-1260 citation-1261 citation-end-1261">Available Actions &amp; Buttons<sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="10"></sup></span><span class="citation-1259 citation-1260 citation-end-1260"><sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="11"></sup></span><span class="citation-1259 citation-end-1259"><sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="12"></sup></span>

- **<span class="citation-1256 citation-1257 citation-1258">Show Archived:</span>**<span class="citation-1256 citation-1257 citation-1258 citation-end-1258"> Click this button to reveal and manage lots that have been<sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="13"></sup></span><span class="citation-1256 citation-1257 citation-end-1257"> historically archived.<sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="14"></sup></span><span class="citation-1256 citation-end-1256"><sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="15"></sup></span>
- **<span class="citation-1254 citation-1255">Add Lot:</span>**<span class="citation-1254 citation-1255 citation-end-1255"> Click this button to launch the configuration screen for a completely new parking lot.<sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="16"></sup></span><span class="citation-1254 citation-end-1254"><sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="17"></sup></span>
- **<span class="citation-1252 citation-1253">Lot Name (link):</span>**<span class="citation-1252 citation-1253 citation-end-1253"> Cli<sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="18"></sup></span><span class="citation-1252 citation-end-1252">ck any listed lot name to open its detailed edit page, where you can modify various settings across different tabs.<sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="19"></sup></span>
- **<span class="citation-1251">Export:</span>**<span class="citation-1251 citation-end-1251"> Click the export button at th<sup class="superscript embedded" data-turn-source-index="20"></sup></span>e far right of each lot row to output the lot's specific configuration information to an Excel file.
- **Search:** Click the search button on each lot row to automatically navigate to the permit search page and view all active permits specifically associated with that lot.

---

## <span style="color: rgb(22, 145, 121);">Best Practices and Considerations</span>

- <span style="color: rgb(22, 145, 121);">**Establish a consistent naming convention:** **Establish a consistent naming convention for your lots** (e.g., "Lot A - Faculty," "Visitor Parking Garage") to significantly improve clarity for both internal administrators and public users.</span>
- <span style="color: rgb(22, 145, 121);">**Manage visibility carefully:** **Carefully consider the Visibility to Users setting for each lot.** A lot marked as "Hidden but Accessible" is highly useful for administrative purposes or hidden user groups, as it remains accessible if the direct booking link is provided.</span>
- <span style="color: rgb(22, 145, 121);">**Define clear waitlist policies:** **Organizations should develop a clear business rule for when to remove a user from the waitlist**, such as after a permit has been officially offered or after a user has been emailed.</span>
- <span style="color: rgb(22, 145, 121);">**Optimize QR code placement:** **If utilizing QR codes for temporary parking, ensure they are prominently displayed and easily scannable** directly at the physical lot location.</span>
- <span style="color: rgb(22, 145, 121);">**Conduct regular audits:** **Periodically review lot configurations**, especially pricing structures and sales windows, to ensure they remain current and fully aligned with your organizational parking policies.</span>