Civic Center Campus Parking Lot Expansion
If you have ever found yourself scurrying from row-to-row trying to find any available parking spot in the City Hall Campus area you may know the frustration often experienced by residents and staff alike.
Parking is hard to find at the downtown City Hall Police Department station.
The area is welcoming with large trees that provide plenty of shade on a hot summer day. Spaces, on the other hand, are not readily available either with or without the benefit of a leafy overhang of branches. Drivers often find that the nearest available parking is on Palmetto Avenue, at the Lewis Library and Technology Center, or along Upland Avenue. The shortage of spots has also taken a toll on the customer-service oriented police department whose main offices serve the public throughout the day.
A response to the lack of space is the design of the expansion of the campus parking lot. The old Valencia Library, an aging structure well beyond its prime, will be demolished to make room for 250 more spaces, landscape and lighting. The estimated $2.8 million cost will include the demolition of the building and create a total of 929 parking spots for the campus.
It is anticipated that construction for the project will begin in winter, 2009 and be completed by fall, 2010. The plan is to alleviate the existing parking shortage, as well as accommodate the additional need for parking resulting from the construction of the new Lewis Library and Technology Center, Center Stage Theater, and Miller Park Amphitheater. The goal for the new parking lot and the origin of the idea were a part of the plans that City Council approved during the planning stages of the DSO City Hall Annex which opened in February, 2008.
To find out more about the program, please contact Graciela Martinez, assistant engineer/utility coordinator at (909) 350-6522.
