Covelli Centre fills parking void for VXI, YSU

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Photo by: William D. Lewis

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Dave Goettsch and Makeda Mosley, who both work for VXI Global Solutions, try not to get muddy as they walk to work from a free parking lot at the Covelli Centre in downtown Youngstown.

Photo by: William D. Lewis

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Dave Goettsch said he doesn’t mind the walk to his office at 20 Federal Place on West Federal Street, and he is glad he’s making money at the call-center company.

By DAVID SKOLNICK

skolnick@vindy.com

YOUNGSTOWN

First it was VXI Global Solutions employees, and beginning Monday, 200 to 400 Youngstown State University students will park their vehicles on lots at the Covelli Centre.

Center officials say they can handle the parking situation.

But the VXI deal hit a speed bump with the vehicles of three call-center employees being towed Tuesday for parking in Covelli’s VIP lot, a location just off of Front Street.

Normally, Covelli Centre officials don’t object to VXI workers’ parking in the VIP lot rather than the gravel lot, located at the rear of the facility’s property, where they’re supposed to park for free.

Tuesday’s problem was the VIP lot was needed for those with luxury boxes and club seats for a concert by the Goo Goo Dolls, said Eric Ryan, the center’s executive director. The center sells packages for luxury boxes and club seats that guarantee parking in the VIP lot, just off Front Street.

VXI employees “were specifically told not to park in spots in the VIP lot,” Ryan said.

Ken Bigley, the center’s assistant director, said VXI was informed that the three cars needed to be moved or they’d be towed.

But Bill Sherhag of Austintown, a VXI employee, said his car was towed from the VIP lot without warning.

“The only time we were asked to not park there was when the circus came to town,” he said.

Sherhag said he parked his car at 7:20 a.m. Tuesday and when he left VXI — he’s worked there since January — at 5 p.m., a Covelli Centre parking attendant told him his vehicle was towed.

VXI employees prefer to park in the closer VIP lot rather than the one for them at the rear of the center property because the latter is poorly lit, a longer walk to the company’s office at 20 Federal Place and pools with mud when it rains, Sherhag said.

“Some of the girls [at VXI] don’t feel safe parking back there at night,” he said. “I’m pretty upset about this. I’ll pay the $2, $3 to park in a safe lot, which is ridiculous because we were promised free parking.”

Bigley said the VXI parking lot has a concrete base covered in gravel.

“It’s not a mud pit,” he said.

But there was standing muddy water in that lot Wednesday after it rained.

Also, Brad Smith, a sales representative for VXI, said his van had a screw lodged in one of its front tires, and it cost him $75 to get the tire replaced, after parking in the center lot.

“To slam us all the way back there — that’s crazy,” Smith said.

Attempts to reach VXI officials Wednesday were unsuccessful.

Despite the snags, center officials say the deal with VXI, with about 75 to 150 employees parking there a day, is going smoothly and a temporary deal with YSU to have about 200 to 400 students park on the center grounds for about a month, beginning Monday, will go well.

Major renovations to YSU’s parking deck on Lincoln Avenue resulted in the university’s coming to an agreement with the city to have students park at the center. Buses will operate between the university and the city-owned entertainment facility between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. on school days.

The city is receiving $7,000 under the deal.

“It’s great VXI is downtown, and, obviously, YSU is a major, major part of the city,” Bigley said. “We don’t anticipate any problems or issues.”

As part of its deal to get VXI to come to the city-owned 20 Federal Place, the company was promised free parking by the city.

The city has a contract with USA Parking Systems Inc. for 250 spots at the Plaza Parking Deck, 16 N. Champion St., for $5,000 a month. City administrators agreed to add 250 spots for another $5,000 a month to the deal because of VXI’s expansion — it recently went from 500 to about 1,100 employees — at the deck. But city council had questions about the deal and tabled it last month.

USA was allowing VXI to use the extra spots for a few months but stopped doing that March 14 because nothing was being done to resolve the issue and the company wanted to be paid.

Jason Ramey, a VXI salesman, is able to park in one of the 250 spots at the deck near his company.

Ramey said there has been parking issues but only in terms of employees finding enough spaces in the deck.

Contributor: Staff writer Karl Henkel