Study finds Santa Monica has some of highest parking rates
DOWNTOWN Parking here might not burn a hole in the wallet, but it could still be an eye-popping experience for those accustomed to using loose change to pay the fare.
The National Parking Association recently conducted a study on private garage operators in 131 North American cities, finding Santa Monica has some of the higher rates in the country.
Parking is at a premium in Santa Monica where the picturesque location not only serves as a hotbed for tourism, but also for corporations who want to do business in the city. Aside from the private operators, City Hall also owns several public parking garages, which were not included in the survey.
The study was conducted to assist private developers, city officials and other invested parties to make informed decision when it comes to parking, said Marty Stein, the president of the 57-year-old trade association.
Stein added that the organization hopes to conduct the survey annually and later expand to include statistics on operating expenses for parking garages, as well as the cost to develop one.
Santa Monica was named in the top 50 U.S. cities with the highest first hour parking and monthly unreserved rates, coming in at $6 for the former and $138.75 for the latter.
The area that was found to have the highest first hour parking rate is just a stone’s throw away from Santa Monica — Century City came in averaging $16. Santa Monica came in at about the middle of the top 50 pack.
“Some of the cities that one might not think were very large cities had some of the strongest parking rates, which is clearly a function of the success of that particular city because what drives parking rates really is supply and demand,”Stein said.“We can create the supply but the cities have to create their own demand.”
Stein added that while many would view high parking rates as a negative, it’s actually a good thing that demonstrates the economic vibrancy of a city.
But some visitors to the city don’t embrace the high rates.
“I think it’s a little too expensive, especially if you just want to stop for 15 minutes,” Sonja Vascal, a visitor from Slovenia, said.
Gabriel Zarate, a Los Angeles resident who works in Santa Monica, pays the monthly parking rate and doesn’t see it as too burdensome.
“I park here because there’s no parking nearby,” he said.
One of the largest private garage operators in Santa Monica is Ampco Parking System, which runs about 31 structures in the city.
Mark Muglich, the executive vice president, said the rates are set based on the cost of development, the day-to-day operating expenses and the market demand.
He pointed out that while the study states unreserved monthly parking in the city averages about $138, much of that fee could be subsidized by the owner of the building that’s connected to a given garage.
“I believe the rate is advantageous in Santa Monica due to the fact that the office building owner keeps the rate under control to keep occupancy in their building,” Muglich said.
Muglich added that the rates in Santa Monica are much less compared to Los Angeles where the average monthly rate for unreserved parking is $193.75 and $12.25 for first hour parking.
“We’re definitely on the lower end,” he said.
Santa Monica is unique in the survey in that there is free parking available in much of the city-owned garages, which waives the fee for the first two hours.
Ellen Gelbard, the assistant director of planning and community development, said that City Hall periodically surveys rates in surrounding cities and adjusts accordingly. The same goes for the beach parking lots.
City Hall also offers monthly unreserved parking for $82.50, which was also not included in the study.
“There are a lot of places right now where two hours being free is kind of unusual,” she said. Christina Walker contributed to this report.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on September 24, 2008. Read the original PDF.