Central’s Jim Bond, Dead at 72

I have known Jim Bond for over 30 years. I can’t say we were close, but Jim was always friendly. He worked at many levels at Central, but except for the first decade of his 41 years there, he was at Monroe Carrels right hand. What Monroe visualized, Jim put into action.

I know that the company was his foremost thought. Once, when my company had invited him to join us at a ski retreat he walked into the opening night dinner in his ski sweater, sat down, got a phone call, told us he had a company emergency, and left.  Never did see the slopes.

When Central opened an airport operation called Park One at LAX, Jim flew in to check the place out. He was left standing for 45 minutes at the curbside, waiting for his own shuttle to pick him up. History does not record what happened when he finally got to the location.

Through our brief interactions, I always found Jim to be professional, and a gentleman. Jim Bond added much to the parking industry.

John Van Horn

Editor, Parking Today

The following, taken from his obituary in the Tennessean:

Jim Bond, 41 year veteran of Central Parking, passed away in early August following a long illness. He was 72. Jim served in many capacities at Central, beginning as a Vice President in St Louis, MO and, prior to his retirement in 2012, President of the Company’s International Division.

James Hardy Bond was born in Chicago, Illinois on June 2, 1942. Jim attended the University of Kentucky, where he graduated with a B.S. in Civil Engineering in 1964. His business career began first as a design engineer with the Kentucky State Highway Department before being called into military service in 1967.

in 1971, Jim began a 41-year career with Central Parking System. His first ten years were as Regional Vice President, positioned in Saint Louis, MO. During this time, Central Parking System grew from operating in three cities to eleven. In 1981, he was appointed as the company’s Chief Operating Officer, which brought Jim and his family back to Nashville. The company experienced strong growth through the 1980s and he was named Central Parking’s President in 1990. By 1991, the company had expanded to 41 cities, including its first international operations at Heathrow Airport and Canary Wharf in London, England. It was also during his time as President that Central Parking System purchased all of the operating contracts from Myers Parking System, which provided the company further expansion in the Northeast (New York City, Boston) and to the West Coast (Los Angeles, San Francisco).

By 1995, Central Parking became a public company listed on the New York Stock Exchange. This access to capital resulted in a series of acquisitions culminating in the purchase of Allright Parking in 1999. This acquisition made Central Parking the largest company worldwide in the parking industry, operating 4,500 locations in 120 cities and 14 countries. In 2007, Central Parking was purchased by a private equity and subsequently merged with Standard Parking in 2012. Jim was widely respected in the parking industry by colleagues and competitors for his business knowledge, his sophisticated yet humble demeanor, and his incredible professionalism. He was a mentor and role-model to many. As testament of the lasting impact Jim made with Central Parking and the parking industry, Standard Parking has named its new Nashville operations support office in his honor.

Jim is survived by his wife, Gwen Bond; sons, Paul (Suzanne) Bond, Andrew (Libby) Bond and daughter, Emily Bond, all of whom loved him dearly and relied on his wisdom and guidance every day. He also leaves behind five grandchildren, Alex, Cooper, Lucy, Watts and Jake.

JVH