Parking Rules and Policies

The goal of the OGS Bureau of Parking Management is to provide a fair and equitable platform for all Downtown Albany State Employees to compete for their preference of available parking based on their Parking Service Date (PSD). With its cornerstone values of seniority and preference, the OGS Downtown Albany Parking System offers the downtown workforce every opportunity to obtain the parking space of their choice, regardless of agency changes or downtown work location.

OGS will make every effort to provide daily parking privileges to registered permit holders in their assigned lot; however, OGS retains the right to re-locate patrons to other OGS parking facilities based on operational need.

Permits issued to registered parkers will remain assigned and available to the State employees who have obtained them, for their exclusive use, unless or until:

• The employee obtains different parking within or outside of the OGS system, or cancels his or her permit; or
• OGS cancels the permit as a result of specific or accumulated violations of OGS parking enforcement policy that warrant cancellation.
• Creating copies of hang tags or allowing use of hang tags by anyone other than permit holder of record is prohibited.

For an overview of how to navigate the OGS Employee Parking System, please visit Downtown Albany Employee Parking System Overview.

In order to park in facilities managed by OGS Parking, an employee must:

• Successfully complete an Employee Parking Profile (EPP);
• Be Issued a permit by OGS Parking with an accompanying hangtag, properly displayed;
• Comply with OGS payment policies and all parking policies and rules
• Work in a location within downtown Albany or have a definitive date of reassignment to a work location within downtown Albany.  You will be eligible to compete for parking in the parking permit issuance round prior to your relocation date and, if awarded, your permit will be available to you 2 business days after acceptance. 
• Employees relocating between permit issuance rounds can receive parking permits commensurate with their parking service dates from the last posted round of issuance.
• If you do not work in a building that is considered within Downtown Albany (by virtue of inclusion in this list), you are NOT eligible for downtown Albany parking.

Employees who fail to comply with these requirements will be subject to OGS parking enforcement policies, including immediate towing or cancellation of parking privileges, and broader discipline as appropriate.

Permit holders are expected to notify OGS Parking Management for any of the following reasons:

• Name Change
• Agency Change
• Cancel Payroll Deduction
• Cancel Permit and Parking
• Change/Add/Delete Carpool Members
• Lost or Stolen Hang Tags
   

Note: You can use your Employee Parking Profile to notify OGS Parking Management of changes to your: phone number, e-mail address, or license plate number(s). (It is not necessary to notify Parking Management for a new vehicle, as long as the license plate number remains the same).

Exchange of Hang Tag/Permit

Current permit holders receiving new hang tags for new parking location assignments MUST surrender their current hang tag upon issuance of the new one. New assignment tags will not be issued without the current tag being surrendered upon issuance. No permit holder should be in possession of two hang tags at any given time. If a permit holder is no longer in possession of their old hang tag they must pay the applicable Lost Hang Tag Fee specified by OGS Parking Management before receiving their new tag.

Hang tags reported lost are placed on a Lost/Stolen List which is monitored during daily patrols of each location. Vehicles found displaying a lost/stolen tag are towed from the facility, without warning and at the expense of the vehicle owner, regardless of whether that patron is the former owner of that lost tag. Any found or recovered lost/stolen tags must be immediately surrendered to OGS Parking. Patrons reporting hang tags lost MUST pay the applicable replacement fee. (This policy applies to temporary access cards, and Special Use Passes)

Cancelation of Permits

To cancel payroll deduction and relinquish parking privileges, the permit holder must complete and return the Cancellation Request (CS 783.2)

form, and surrender their hang tag at either their parking location, or the OGS Parking Office, Room 144, ESP Concourse.

The form can be emailed to [email protected] or faxed to 518-474-0111.

Cancellation of payroll deduction will not be processed until the tag is returned. Cancellation of payroll deduction for parking permit fees can only be processed on the first day of a pay period.  Any patron no longer in possession of the hang tag when canceling, is subject to the lost/stolen hang tag fee.

PLEASE NOTE: Cancellation requests and hang tags received after the first day of a pay period will be processed effective the beginning of the next available pay period.

Parking permit fees are deducted in bi-weekly increments and cannot be pro-rated.

Permit holders who cancel parking privileges may in some cases be entitled to a refund. Refunds will only be applicable if the hang tag has been returned to OGS Parking, and cancellation form submitted prior to the payroll period in question.

To apply for a refund, complete and return a Refund Request Form CS-784 form. 

OGS Parking Management is not responsible for loss or damages to any motor vehicle or the personal property inside any motor vehicle due to weather conditions, natural disasters, theft, vandalism, or any other action of a third party.  It is the responsibility of parking patrons to make sure that their vehicles are securely locked.  Additionally, OGS recommends that valuable personal items be removed from vehicles or stored in locked trunks.

If a parking patron is injured, or in the event of damage or loss, in a State-operated parking facility, the parking patron must report the details of the incident to the parking lot attendant at the time of the incident, and submit an Internal Report of Damages, Theft and/or Injury (CS 708) form.  The State Police should be contacted if there is no parking lot attendant on duty. Incidents occurred after hours can be reported to OGS Parking by phone at 518-474-8118 until 9pm or emailed to: [email protected].

The Office of General Services operates several parking areas in and around the Empire State Plaza in downtown Albany, New York.  Please note, there is no re-entry in all OGS visitor parking areas. For additional information, please visit Parking Information for Visitors.

Permit holders and carpool members who park in peripheral lots, and in certain downtown Albany surface lots, will be provided with access to the CDTA transportation system by means of issuance of a CDTA Navigator Card at no additional cost. CDTA schedules are posted on the main page of the OGS Parking website, and on the CDTA website. Riders must follow all protocols set forth by CDTA to utilize the system. 

The following rules apply to parking at all OGS parking facilities:

• Permit holders must park in their assigned lot, within the striped spaces, unless directed otherwise by the parking attendant.
• Parking permits are non-transferable and permit holder may not be in possession of multiple hang-tags.
• Permit holders must obey all posted signage within the facility, and any directions issued by the parking lot attendants.
• Parking in the following areas is prohibited unless specifically authorized:
  • Roadways;
  • Reserved or medical spaces;
  • Lawns, in front of driveways or doorways, or within 15 feet of a fire hydrant;
  • Designated areas that may interfere with construction activities; and
  • Any other area signed for 'No Parking' or is so indicated by a parking attendant.
• In some parking facilities, specific instructions are posted for parking of vehicles, such as,
  • Double parked vehicles must leave car keys with attendant
  • Vehicles in angled parking spaces must park front end first
• Permit holders must obey all traffic and parking signs, including posted speed limits, at all times.
• Accidents and injuries must be reported immediately to a parking lot attendant or the State Police.
• State ID cards are required for gate entry into the Empire State Plaza garage.
• Parking permit hang-tags must be displayed according to instructions while entering the parking facility and while the vehicle is parked. Any vehicle without a parking permit hang-tag will be denied entry to the lot.
• Overnight parking is prohibited unless authorized by OGS Parking Management.
• Scheduling maintenance on your vehicle while parked in an OGS facility is prohibited (i.e. windshield replacement...)
• Electric vehicles may only be charged at designated EV Charging Stations (See Zero Emissions Vehicle Charging Program link for more information). Permit holders and visitors CANNOT utilize power outlets in parking facilities to charge their electric vehicles.
• Children, live animals, or anything that present a hazard to patrons or to itself cannot be left unattended in vehicles parking in OGS parking facilities. 
• If it is determined that a parking permit is not being used by the holder of record, the permit will be canceled and/or reassigned.
• On occasions in which operational needs require, OGS Parking Management staff will direct permit holders to park in specific areas of the facility that best serve the facility’s current needs. Vehicles not following staff instructions are subject to enforcement measures including, but not limited to, citations, and towing. (i.e. snow events, construction…)
• In the event of an emergency, OGS Parking Management can change or suspend all rules.

Citations will be issued against registered vehicles found in violation of any rules according to the following guidelines:

1. Parking permit holders who receive two (2) citations for parking violations within a three (3) month period shall have their parking privileges suspended for a period not to exceed 30 calendar days.
2. If within three (3) months for the thirty-day suspension a permit holder receives one more citation, they will be suspended for sixty (60) days.
3. If a parking permit holder receives an additional violation within six months of the last suspension, they will be suspended for one (1) year.
4. Any suspension, except in the case of vehicles found displaying an altered hang tag, will begin three days after service of a notice suspension.
5. Persons found in violation of suspension will have their vehicle towed from the parking facility immediately, at the owner's expense.
6. Any person subject to a third suspension within an 18-month period shall be considered a habitual violator and will be suspended for 60 days for the third suspension and subsequent suspensions within the 18-month period.
7. Suspended permit holders remain subject to prevailing fees during their suspension.
8. Permit holders engaging in abusive, threatening, or otherwise inappropriate behavior within the parking facility
9. Permit holders found displaying a lost/stolen or altered hang tag.

If a parked vehicle is found displaying an altered or lost/stolen hang-tag, the permit holder will have their parking privileges suspended for a period of 60 days, beginning on the day the vehicle is found in violation. An altered parking permit is defined as any authorized parking permit which has been duplicated, or a portion of which has been altered, erased, obliterated, removed or covered to conceal its original design and purpose. For definition of “Lost/Stolen Tags” see “Exchange of Hang tags/Permits”.

A vehicle may be removed from parking facility under the following circumstances:

1. When a vehicle obstructing traffic is found unattended.
2. When a vehicle is parked in a construction zone.
3. If a vehicle is causing a health and safety issue within the parking facility
4. When two vehicles are parked in a facility under one parking permit.
5. When a vehicle is found parking displaying an altered hang-tag, or a hang-tag reported lost or stolen.
6. When a vehicle is under suspension and found in violation of such suspension.
7. When a vehicle is found parked in a parking facility other than the one for which it has a valid permit without prior approval from OGS Parking Management.
8. When a parking permit hang-tag is not displayed.
9. When the vehicle plate number is not associated to a valid parking permit.
10. Vehicle driver does not follow onsite, or administrative, OGS Parking staff instructions.

Prior to being towed, a vehicle may be inventoried. A list of the vehicle contents will be made and countersigned by the truck operator and an OGS official. OGS Parking Management reserves the right to enter a vehicle during the towing process to confiscate an altered, expired, duplicated or lost/stolen/missing hang-tag. The owner of the vehicle will be charged for its removal and storage, payable to the authorized towing company before the vehicle is released.