A Snob’s Guide to Parking in New York City
Last year, Rolls-Royce loaned me a Ghost for a test drive. The four-door sedan, which has long been a star in the manufacturer’s luxury lineup, was painted iridescent white and had a bright red leather interior. It was fun to drive for all the expected reasons—the handling is smooth and the engine powerful—and also because every time I stopped at a light, someone would approach me. A smiling construction worker told me he’d always wanted one. A group of kids who looked like they were cutting school offered to come work for my company—whatever it was.
Driving the Rolls was great until I pulled into the garage in my midtown office building and the usually friendly attendant ran out waving his arms and saying “No, no, no!” I asked if they were full and he said, “You just can’t park that here.” The manager came over and explained that accepting rare cars—say a $424,000 custom Rolls-Royce—is an insurance liability and not one that most garages are eager to take on.
Justin Lopez, a 34-year-old car enthusiast, ran into the same problem a few years ago when he worked at Ferrari’s Park Avenue outpost. Each time the manufacturer had an event in the city, Lopez would have to find spots at night for the extra cars. “I’d drive around for hours looking for a lot, but few wanted to take a risk.” Lopez heard similar complaints from rare car owners who lived in the city. “They had complicated arrangements with garages, including renting more than one space for their car to avoid scratches and handing out extra payments in cash every month to keep the car on the main floor.”
Lopez recognized an opportunity and in 2020 he leased a closed-off section of an existing garage on the Upper East Side and created Paddock, a private garage specifically for rare, over-the-top, and expensive cars. “Business started when a guy with a Porsche 996 GT paid me six months up front and then it just kind of blossomed from there.” Now Paddock’s tenants include a Singer Classic, an Aston Martin DB4, and many other rare Porsches.
The space has its own door and the only people who can enter it are Paddock attendants and car owners who have the key code. Owners can drop off or pick up their cars whenever they want as long as they give Paddock 15 minute’s notice so they can take the cover off the car and ensure it’s ready to drive. Paddock, which now has three locations in the city and one in Miami, offers additional services, including minor maintenance tasks like detailing, battery charging, and starting the car every week. It will also take vehicles to service appointments, and arrange to transport them anywhere in the country. “If someone wants their car in Aspen for a vacation, we’ll get it there seamlessly,” Lopez says. “Our goal is to take on all the work that comes with owning a exotic automobile so the owner can focus on the fun.”
Not long after opening Paddock, Lopez noticed that his clients were asking about each other's cars, and he had a second business epiphany. “It’s not easy for car enthusiasts to get to know each other in the city.” So Paddock has begun hosting dinners for its clients as well as drives, rallies, and other events. “It’s basically a car club where the ticket is your car,” Lopez says. “Instead of charging you a huge initiation fee, you just have to show up in your McLaren and that's your proof of funds.” Parking spaces begin at $1,800 a month. Paddocknyc.com
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