The city of West Hollywood hosted a grand opening celebration on Tuesday to mark the completion of its Automated Garage and Community Plaza at West Hollywood City Hall. More than 500 community members enjoyed hosted tours of the garage and parking bays  which contain art murals.

(photo by Gregory Cornfield)

“We’re very excited about the completion of the Automated Garage,” said city of West Hollywood Mayor Lauren Meister. “It is located in an area of the city that has been in need of additional parking, and it will help to fill that need. The technology is amazing – and kind of fun, too! I drove in facing one way, but my car came out facing the other way … how does it know?”

The city of West Hollywood is thrilled to embrace automated parking as an innovative solution to the challenge of creating sufficient parking. The garage requires a much smaller physical footprint than would a conventional parking structure with a similar capacity. The space savings nets more than 7,000 square feet for a Community Plaza and an entry service area for community events.

In March 2014, the city broke ground on the project. Construction was finished in spring 2016. It is the first municipal project of its kind on the West Coast, and it includes a 200-space parking garage that matches the height of the adjacent city hall building. With no idling or circling, the predicted reduction in CO2 emissions is equivalent of taking 92 cars off of the road each year or planting 67,000 trees.

The garage has four bays for entry and exit, each with hand-painted murals by artists including Art of Chase, MONCHO1929, Bronwyn Lundberg, and Kim West. The garage features a fixed-art installation by renowned public artist Ned Kahn, whose grid of clear marbles in front of a glass pane reflect moving parts inside the garage. The structure also uses photovoltaic solar panels, features the use of a sustainable material made from recycled bags and uses drought-tolerant landscaping.

The project includes a Community Plaza, which is a tranquil space with trees, benches, a water feature and a stage for events. In the plaza is a large-scale triptych art-banner installation, which is a collaboration of artist MONCHO1929 and West Hollywood City Poet Steven Reigns.

For information call (323)848-6375.