eGo CarShare & Balfour at Riverfront Park
Balfour at Riverfront Park in Denver is a natural fit for carsharing. Located right in the heart of downtown, this vibrant senior community houses 140 residents, has 100 staff and is ideally located to take advantage of all the great transportation options available nearby.
Ann O’Neill, a Resident Adviser on the Leasing and Marketing Team, loves taking the light rail to work, but needs a car to visit clients on the job. Carsharing with eGo CarShare, which has a car right outside the door of Balfour, was ideally suited to meet her needs.
She says, “I need the flexibility of a car to nurture relationships with clients but enjoy using the light rail rather than driving for my commute.” Carsharing not only gave her the ability to have access to a car without sitting in traffic coming into work but also solved an insurance issue related to transporting clients in personal cars and personal liability, since excellent insurance coverage is included in every eGo CarShare reservation.
eGo CarShare also makes it easy to use cars for business- instead of needing to be reimbursed for personal car usage and mileage, companies like Balfour can have a direct account with eGo CarShare and enjoy the low business rates offered to business and nonprofit groups. Brandi Williamson, Leasing Director for Balfour, says, “We appreciate the level of care taken to ensure that vehicles are clean and well maintained. Balfour is a luxury brand and the eGo CarShare vehicles are a wonderful way to accommodate our clients and provide convenient access to the staff.”
Ann remarked, “Everyone on the Leasing team uses the carshare cars,” and they have taken the cars to visit prospective clients in places like Thornton, Evergreen, and Arvada. Personal home visits and an in-depth assessment of clients’ needs, as well as driving prospective clients to see the Balfour sites or to other appointments, is all part of the extraordinary lengths Balfour goes to to create their community and work with potential clients to find the right fit for them.
With so many people in its community, Balfour has unique transportation needs. There is a private fleet of three vehicles to transport residents, as well as access to a weekly shuttle, and of course, all the transportation options of downtown Denver like transit from nearby Union Station and ridesharing. Carsharing is a great addition to these options, as it allows residents the freedom and independence of access to a personal vehicle even if they do not have their own.
Balfour has chosen to limit the amount of on-site parking in an effort to be “good stewards in an urban setting.” Ann says, “We encourage ourselves, our residents and their visitors to take advantage of the new Denver” and all the options that are available so close by. Residents do have the option to pay for parking their own cars on-site, but carsharing can be an elegant solution to save money and continue to have access to a personal vehicle if residents want to drive without owning personally.
Balfour knows they can rely on eGo CarShare to meet their needs. Not only is the Riverfront Prius (V #202) right outside their door, but there are a number of other cars close by including the new Union Station spot (V #205). Like all eGo CarShare members, Balfour staff and residents have access to all 53 cars in Denver, Boulder and Longmont including all-wheel drives and pickup trucks. And should an issue arise, they know a staff member is just a phone call away 24/7. As Brandi puts it, “the best part of our carsharing usage is the continued support and efforts from eGo staff to educate our team on efficient and easy usage. Staff have been responsive and better yet, proactive in assisting our team.”
If you’re interested in becoming an eGo CarShare member, please visit https://carshare.org/2016dev/join-now
To learn more about Balfour Senior Living, which provides independent living, assisted living and memory care in a setting that combines the amenities of a four star hotel with the comforts of a carefully designed residential setting, please visit http://balfourcare.com
