Spire Will Feature Seattle’s First Automated Parking System

As the tower closest to the Space Needle, Spire is nearing completion in September. Spire is a collection of 343 one-, two- and three-bedroom condominiums with prices starting from the high $400,000s, according to developer Laconia.

As part of the $350 million 41-story condominium tower, Laconia is also preparing to debut Seattle’s first fully automated parking system (APS) that transfers each vehicle to an available parking space via a computer-controlled system, all within a matter of minutes and without a driver in the vehicle. Developed by California-based Parkworks, the Spire APS is manufactured in Switzerland by Sotefin.

“Parking is becoming a major issue in many cities as people move to urban cores. Creative solutions are required to solve the shortage of parking. In a central setting like downtown Seattle, it doubles the typical capacity of a parking garage and as the APS is 100 percent electric, lowers emissions from the parking process. The driver pulls up to the APS, turns off the car and the APS does the rest,” said Michael Dennison, president of Parkworks.