> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Mall garage changes could make parking woes worse for employees - URL: https://www.smdp.com/mall-garage-changes-could-make-parking-woes-worse-for-employees/ - Published: 2008-07-26T15:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-25T00:24:17.000Z - Author: Guest Author - Tags: Business, Downtown, #archive-import *Employees struggle to park* *By Macerich previously provided free parking for mall employees. That could all change when the garage reopens as employees will be asked to leave their Brandon Wise CURRENT LOOK: The parking structure at Colorado Avenue and Second Street is slated to be completely renovated.* The two garages are the only city-owned structures where drivers can park their cars without receiving a stub and paying an attendant.While the cars are currently restricted to three free hours, many, specifically workers whose employers don’t provide parking, leave their vehicles far longer, checking their tires occasionally for chalk marks, an indicator that a parking enforcement officer is on the lookout. Post-renovation, the mall structures will operate on attendant parking, bringing them in line with the other city-owned garages in Downtown where drivers are allowed to leave their cars free for two hours and begin paying the hourly rate after that time has elapsed. “We just want to make the pricing and the use of the parking consistent with the other downtown parking garages,” Nia Tang, a senior administrative analyst with the Economic Development Division (EDD) at City Hall, said. The estimated $10 million project, a cost that will be shared by both City Hall and the mall’s operator Macerich, will remodel the exterior of the two garages, transforming them from the dingy outdated look of the 1980s to a modernized and sleek facade, improving what many believe would be the first image that visitors would have of the area. The City Council earlier this month approved a partnership with Macerich for the project. “It’s their first and last experience at the property so it’s important to have a good first and last impression,” Bob Aptaker, the vice president of development at Macerich, said. “What we’re trying to do is make it easier to access, make it more convenient, and make it have a feel-good experience all the way around.” The ground floor of the structures will feature ground-floor retail spaces and protected bicycle parking that could hold nearly 300 spaces. The retail spots will be leased by Macerich, which has yet to determine the type of businesses they will target. It was one of the reasons why the national mall operator felt it was important to act as the leasing agent, ensuring a synergy exists with the stores in the new Santa Monica Place, which is expected to reopen in late 2009. “The facade improvements are about freshening up something, creating a new and improved look,” Elana Buegoff, a senior administrative analyst with EDD, said. The project also includes solar panels and new landscaping along Colorado. At least one of the garages will also have a valet parking option that Aptaker called “white glove,” unique in that it will include a system where customers can page when they’re ready to leave. The improvements at the mall garages will coincide with the similar enhancements that will take place at the city-owned structures along Second and Fourth streets. “We really want this to be a very good experience,” Aptaker said. City Hall and Macerich will each be responsible for handling a certain set of tasks — the former paying for the aesthetic improvements, outside stairs and solar panels; the latter paying for the security cameras, new elevators and inside stairwell. Both will jointly pay for the attendant parking booths and gates as well as new signs. The intent for the renovation is to change the perception of the two structures. “When you look at the garages today, they look like parking garages and we really want them to represent Santa Monica Place as part of the same property,” Aptaker said. “That is why it is so important they look good and visually are enhanced.” cars at the nearby Civic Center Parking Garage. Several shoppers to the area seem unfazed by the changes slated for the mall garages. “As long as there’s two hours free,” Monet Brock said after parking her car in the Broadway lot. For many Downtown workers, the changes in the garages might make them rethink their mode of transportation. Travis Miller, who works at Vans shoe store directly across from the Broadway structure, has to arrive 20 minutes before his shift in order to secure a spot, which doesn’t come as easily since more than 50 percent of the garage was recently shut down. “It’s crowded and sometimes takes me half an hour to find a spot,” Miller, who also moves his car every three hours, said. “But if they’re going to change it, I’ll just have to deal.” Miller said that his company has only a few parking permits available. “Unfortunately, it’s the closest place to park,” he said. “If it changes, I’ll be encouraged to ride my bike more.” Some workers said it’s challenging to leave the stores to check their cars, especially for those who run a one-man show. Casey Collins, who has worked for Papyrus on the Third Street Promenade for more than a year, said she used to leave during 10-minute breaks to check on her car at the Broadway garage. Today she has her boyfriend for drop offs and pick ups. Collins estimated that she has spent more than $500 on tickets over the past year. “We just can’t leave every two hours to move a car,” Collins said when notified of the changes to the mall garages. “It’s just not feasible.” While some say it isn’t the responsibility of City Hall or Macerich to provide free parking for all Downtown employees, they would like to see a discounted monthly permit rate offered for workers. Several of the structures have spaces occupied by monthly permits, including at the public library and Civic Center, which is the only one out of the bunch that actually has spaces available for sale. The remainder have a long waiting list. The permits cost $82.50 a month, far less than if a driver was to pay the flat $7 every day. “We limit the monthly parking spaces in the downtown area in order to make the two-hour spaces available,” Lucy Dyke, the transportation planning manager for City Hall, said. “In general we like to operate the garages so some spaces are available.” Approximately 23,000 monthly spaces were sold during the fiscal 2006-07 year, which if divided by 12 months, would mean there were about 1,900 people with an account. Dyke said that some of the accounthold-ers might also have their names on the waiting list to find a more desirable spot to their workplace. A total of 3.8 million people enter and exit the Downtown garages every day. Dyke said the mall structures are not intended to serve as all-day parking. “Employee parking is really important but it’s a complicated problem and the city struggles with both not having resources to make parking available to everyone at whatever price they want,” Dyke said. She pointed out that the downtown area is roughly the same size as Santa Monica College, the largest single transit generator in the city. Both places have a high use of public transit relative to parking, she said. “To the extent we can avoid having everyone driving a car, it will help the mobility for everyone else,” she said. For some employers, the monthly parking permit is too costly to provide to all of their workers. Such is the case for Hannah Hartnell, who runs a bridal dress shop on Fourth Street and currently owns three permits for a structure located one block away. She subleases one permit to another store owner and gives one to a long-time employee. The rest of her staff, which is comprised of interns, park in the Broadway mall garage. “If I didn’t have that garage, I don’t know what I would do,” Hartnell said in reference to the mall lot. Hartnell said that City Hall should consider offering an employee discount and shuttle service from the Civic Center to the downtown area, making it more attractive for workers near Wilshire to purchase a permit. “If they want to fill the garage they should have a discount, that would accomplish it,” she said. ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/072608-12_01.jpg) *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on July 26, 2008.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/072608.pdf?ref=smdp.com)