More downtown parking, light rail in leaders’ sights
DOWNTOWN — City Hall sits on the precipice of a major land-grab, mulling the purchase of millions of dollars worth of real estate in the downtown area.
The properties in question could be used to help alleviate the parking crunch and provide light rail service up to Santa Monica’s doorstep.
A closed-door discussion set for Tuesday night should have elected leaders weighing in on 10 downtown properties that may be used to expand parking space, sources said. If so, the acquisitions could help City Hall achieve its goal of adding 2,000 more spaces downtown within the next decade.
Miriam Mack, the city’s economic development manager, wouldn’t disclose specifics about the discussion. However, she said city staff would be seeking direction from the City Council regarding strategies to pursue negotiations for the properties, as listed on the agenda.
If the council were to purchase any of the properties listed, Mack said a proposal would be brought forth publicly at a future meeting.
“All contracts have to be approved by the council,” Mack said. “At any point in time when an agreement is to be approved it will be on a public agenda for the public’s consideration.”
The sites are mostly located on the 1300 and 1400 blocks of Fourth Street between Arizona Avenue and Broadway, and the 1400 and 1600 blocks of Fifth Street between Broadway and Olympic Avenue. They include the temporary site of the Santa Monica Library, a parking structure site, and several smaller properties currently being used for retail and offices.
Officials who attended an April 26 closed session, in which several of the properties were discussed, said the City Hall’s parking plan was a major component driving the real estate search.
COUNCIL LOOKING FOR SPACE The downtown parking plan was signed off by the City Council in 2002 after nearly a year of research and discussion by a task force specifically created to address the shortage of downtown parking. A consultant was hired for $150,000 to help the task force find potential parking places and figure out how to finance them.
The plan would add 1,712 new parking spaces between Fifth Street and the Third Street Promenade. City Hall has already embarked on the rebuilding and retro-fitting of some existing parking garages, which will create a total of 2,931 spaces. The new spaces will come from rebuilding and adding to three garages — which will produce 712 slots — and another 1,000 by constructing two new structures near Fifth Street. Those structures will have street-level retail and be used by those with monthly passes so short-term visitors can park closer to the Promenade.
It’s estimated that the additions will cost about $92.5 million, which would be self-financed through revenue bonds paid for by increasing parking fees and downtown property assessments. The costs will most likely be passed on to drivers, as well as developers and business owners who operate in the downtown area.
Monthly parking rates in the garages are expected to be increased from $75 a month to $105, and short-term rates would increase to $1.25 every 20 minutes after the first two free hours, with a maximum of $10 for the day. The current maximum is $7.
The task force reasoned that property owners would benefit from the additional spaces and, therefore, should help finance them. New commercial development downtown already pays into a shared parking fund and is not required to provide separate parking. The downtown area has seen about 50,000 square feet of growth per year over the past eight years.
As far as the assessments are concerned, the task force considered tacking on an extra 50 cents per square foot to existing properties and expanding the assessment district to include an additional 1.9 million square feet in commercial space. That district would include north of Wilshire Boulevard, the east side of Sixth Street, the north side of Colorado Avenue and the east side of Ocean Avenue.
Jeff Mathieu, director of City Hall’s resource management department, said in addition to securing possible parking sites, the city also frequently looks at real estate in order to help improve easements, infrastructure and affordable housing.
Mathieu said people in the real estate community frequently contact him to let him know sites are available for purchase. If it seems City Hall may have some use for the sites, they are discussed in closed session. If the City Council discloses it’s interested in acquiring one of the sites, city staff will then look further into the properties.
According to Mathieu, there was no particular real estate purchasing budget City Hall operates on, but that purchases were driven by need. He said one way to secure funds for real estate investment, if the funds were not immediately available, was by raising bonds.
Mathieu did not say which of the sites City Hall may pursue buying. He said the properties were listed on the agenda because the law requires the city provide some public disclosure whenever a property is on the table for discussion.
LIGHT RAIL MAKING ITS WAY Negotiations for the Sears property, 402 Colorado Ave., is also set to be discussed in closed session Tuesday evening. City Hall has shown interest in purchasing the 40,000-square-foot property for more than a year. It’s currently owned by Sears and is used as a retail outlet and car repair shop.
Officials have said the land could be the ideal site for the western end of a proposed light rail line from downtown Los Angeles to Santa Monica. It also might be used to build more affordable housing or a new parking structure.
Plans for a light rail project from downtown LA to Santa Monica are still in the preliminary stages, but $505 million has been set aside for the first phase of the line, which threads into Culver City and is scheduled to be completed in 2012.
The property is part of a master plan for the civic center area which is on hold because of the budget crisis. Officials hope to make a giant public space downtown, stretching from the Third Street Promenade, past City Hall and the Santa Monica Courthouse, to Main Street.
Mayor Pam O’Connor, who sits on the board of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, said the plan is to bring the light rail line to Santa Monica, contrary to recent reports that Los Angeles 11th District Councilman Bill Rosendahl may try to make the line pass through Venice instead.
Because the light rail line is already set to come to Santa Monica, O’ Connor said acquisition of the Sears property wouldn’t expedite or “lure” the line to the city.
“The MTA board has a vision and intent that the Expo line comes to Santa Monica,” O’ Connor said. “The details are still to be worked out.”
O’ Connor said the MTA board in spring will begin to discuss details for the second phase of the light rail’s construction to Santa Monica.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on October 25, 2005. Read the original PDF.