Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa urged the City Council on Monday to salvage a plan to lease out several city-owned parking garages, including the Broxton Avenue facility in Westwood Village, warning that a failure to generate revenues from private investors would mean more city employees being furloughed.
Villaraigosa blamed the council for the failure of a draft agreement to draw potential bidders. He said its decision to restrict how much the incoming management could charge for parking was a turnoff for investors.
"The modifications, exceptions and carve-outs, allowed at the request of a few members, rendered a potentially lucrative city asset worthless—precisely as we repeatedly warned,'' Villaraigosa said in a letter to the council. "I therefore, once again, strongly urge you to immediately adopt a robust parking concession agreement—stripped of the modifications, exceptions and carve-outs previously allowed at the request of a few members—which will maximize the value of these assets."
"If the city is unable to realize at least $53 million in revenue, after defeasance of debt, from a responsible parking concession agreement this fiscal year, then we must immediately implement additional spending reductions—including additional employee furloughs—which could have a deleterious effect on our ability to deliver basic city services,'' Villaraigosa said.
The council had modified the concession agreement last month to appease constituents who wanted to continue paying $2 to park at the Hollywood & Highland lot, and nothing at all for the first two hours to park at the Broxton lot in Westwood Village.
City News Service was used to compile this report.
