Customer Case Study: The Linden
The Linden, a collection of five townhouses with 30 residences, is located in Oakland, California. The Linden is a newly constructed multifamily community that uses Swiftlane for access control and visitor, delivery, and parking gate management. This case study covers their experience using the Swiftlane cloud-based access control system and video intercom.
About The Linden
The Linden is a multifamily residential community in the heart of West Oakland, California, just six blocks from the iconic Fox Theater. Completed in September 2020, The Linden is a boutique collection of five townhouses with a total of 30 residences. This unique multifamily community offers amenities such as package concierge, gated parking, a central lounge and kitchen area, and an on-site property manager.
The Challenge
The Linden is located at the center of Oakland’s vibrant arts, music, and culture community. Although the residences are tucked away on a quiet street, everything tenants want is just a short walk or BART ride away. The challenge for this newly constructed community was putting the right technology and access control solutions in place that would ensure tenant safety, security, and convenience.
“Swiftlane was brought to our company by one of our vendors, and he had tested it out before installing it,” said Catherine Hsu, The Linden Property Manager. “We were impressed it won a prize the very first year that it came out. We had recently just leased up, and we are a new building, so Swiftlane was the first access control system at this building.”
The Solution
Swiftlane offered The Linden a seamless, convenient access control and video intercom system that removed operational burden from the property manager and ensured tenants felt safe and secure in their homes. Implementing Swiftlane helped The Linden in the following ways:
Package and Delivery Management
The 30 residents who live at The Linden receive a lot of packages and deliveries every day. And because package theft is one of the biggest concerns for multifamily buildings, it was a high priority to find a secure solution that wouldn’t burden tenants or management. “Security is something that can’t be compromised, so I would say package security and mail security is the biggest concern,” said Catherine Hsu.
Swiftlane was installed on the external side gate that tenants use to access the mailbox and package concierge area. Delivery vendors can use the video intercom function to communicate with the property manager or tenants to gain access remotely. It’s also an option to give temporary access PINs to delivery vendors, so they can access the gate without needing to video call every day.
“Some things I really appreciate about Swiftlane are that I can help open the gate for delivery people from anywhere,” said Catherine Hsu. “I just get a call on my phone, I open up the app, I can see who it is, and then let them in. If I see it’s a delivery person I can even talk to them; that’s a really awesome feature.”
Self-Enrollment and User Experience
Typically onboarding and enrollment for new buildings can be cumbersome and complex, especially with a new construction building. By implementing Swiftlane Touchless Access, residents were able to set up their account, create a login, and enroll from their mobile device when it was convenient for them.
“Some of our less tech savvy residents have needed assistance, but that’s been only two or three residents,” said Catherine Hsu. “Everyone else, like the other 27, haven’t really had any trouble. Even before I sent out instructions, some residents already had their facial recognition set up. I think it’s pretty user-friendly.”
Tenants were especially excited about the option to use facial recognition because it meant not needing to carry a key card or even have a mobile device on them to access the side gate or parking area. “The facial recognition feature has received a lot of positive feedback,” said Catherine Hsu.
Secure Parking Gate Access
Although The Linden is in the heart of a very walkable Oakland community, many residents still own cars and need a secure parking option. For an additional cost, tenants can have access parking that is secured behind a gate. Swiftlane was installed on the parking gate to ensure only tenants with parking permissions were granted access. Tenants with access can use their mobile app or face recognition to access the parking gate 24 hours a day.
Easy-to-Use Admin Dashboard
As the property manager at The Linden, Catherine Hsu is responsible for onboarding and overseeing all tenant access. She is the person residents come to when they have any issues or questions about leasing, access, amenities, and more. The Swiftlane dashboard has helped make her job easier by streamlining many of the admin functions she’s responsible for.
“Using the admin portal has been really easy to just add people’s emails, names, and then assign them to a group,” said Catherine Hsu. “So I haven’t had any trouble with getting people onboarded and giving them PINs. That’s all been really straightforward and easy for me.”
The admin dashboard allows for remotely granting access to delivery vendors, tenants, and visitors from anywhere, which is important in a remote first world. The dashboard has the option to add multiple admins and receptionists and easy scales to manage multiple sites and buildings, which is convenient for property managers who are responsible for more than one property.
