Smart Thinking

http://www.guru-international.com/gday_mate/archives/2005/04/19/smart-thinking-2

There is an interesting story in The Age about a budding entrepreneur:

An internet car parking scheme, said to be the first in the world, is linking Melbourne commuters with empty driveways and car parks.
A financial boost for the owners, the scheme has attracted hundreds of listings in just a few weeks&
Last month, Melbourne entrepreneur Francis Armstrong launched www.findacarpark.com, an internet car park market that is based in Melbourne but operates nationwide.
The website is based on a simple idea. Property owners with vacant car spaces can advertise them for rent, and commuters seeking cheap parking can use the site to look for a vacant space.
Mr Armstrongs company takes a 5 per cent commission when a space is matched with a tenant.
The parks on offer are a mixture of private driveways and car spaces in apartment buildings.

Hmmm. The minute I saw the headlines I just knew that the bureaucrats would have to get involved and try to spoil it:

But the Mayor of the City of Yarra, Kay Meadows, warned yesterday that the scheme appeared to be in breach of the councils planning code.

Yeah. Onya Sir Humphrey&

One Response to Smart Thinking

1. Francis Armstrong Says:
   April 20th, 2005 at 11:36 am

   Thanks for the posting. I was on air yesterday http://www.findacarpark.com/dsp_article.cfm?articleID=16 with a city mayor objecting to the concept. You are spot on, this is about a bureaucrat protecting their parking fine revenue. The concept has gone through legal process and it is all green light.

   The support for our concept has been overwhelming from both the public and the media.

   Thanks again,

   Francis