Montgomery plans for $89 million garage decried
Montgomery County has a weird, wacky political culture. Voters there consistently elect Democrats who profess to be liberals and dedicated environmentalists, but county elected officials and planners there are strangely obsessed with transportation mega-projects that elevate the singly occupied personal vehicle to iconic status. It's a bit like Houston with GS-15 jobs but no decent barbecue.
Ben Ross of the Action Committee for Transit provides a welcome counterpoint to this autocentric group think that seems to dominate Montgomery County government. One has to wonder why more people there aren't questioning plans to spend $89 million on a Bethesda parking garage in an area that is slated for a Purple Line light rail station.
From a Baltimore point of view, Montgomery is a faraway land where people are welcome to all the boondoggles thay want to pay for out of their own pockets, but there are valid concerns that the county will try to backfill some of the money it plans to spend on this project with state transportation dollars.
One can only hope that the Maryland Department of Transportation and the General Assembly budget committees will be vigilant in seeing this doesn't happen.
Comments
How does a parking garage cost that much? That just seems completely ridiculous to me.
Am I just naive to construction costs these days? It's just concrete.
Posted by: Jed | November 30, 2009 12:41 PM
Usually I agree with your barbs at Montgomery County, but I think your complaint about the Bethesda garage is unfair.
Bethesda, with its many moderately priced restaurants of varied ethnicity is a destination for many people who can't get there by public transit, even if the Purple Line is built. When we are staying with family in central Mogo, we have no choice but drive. Parking in Bethesda most evenings is horrendous, even for someone who lives in Federal Hill. They need a garage.
When I testified in favor of state aid for the West Street garage (serving the Cross Street area), Nancy Kopp, now state treasurer but then chair of the appropriations committee, was skeptical because of the congestion in Bethesda. I agreed that a garage was needed there too, and promised to support state funds for one when proposed. Their need is greater now.
True, the cost seems excessive. But how large would it be, and where would it be located? Land doesn't come cheap in Bethesda.
Posted by: Jim Keat | November 30, 2009 4:58 PM
Jim - First of all, parking in downtown Bethesda is the easiest thing in the world, if you're willing to pay $5 or so for a private garage or valet parking. Even the subsidized county parking is plentiful on Sunday through Wednesday nights, and so-so on Thursdays. On weekend evenings, it's in short supply in certain garages but available if you're willing to walk four or five blocks.
Now let's do some arithmetic. Over the next 20 years, there will be 1040 Friday nights and 1040 Saturday nights. Divide $80,000 by 2080, and you get $38.46 that it will cost for your parking space - and that's not counting operations, maintenance, or interest.
Why should the government pay $38.46 to create a parking space to save you the $7 cost of valet parking?
Posted by: Ben Ross | December 1, 2009 4:14 PM
I still wonder where that $89 million cost figure came from. I haven't been able to find information about it in The Post or Gazette. The Cross Street business association in South Baltimore built a three-story garage holding 1,200 cars for $6 million in city and state subsidized financing.
Posted by: Jim Keat | December 6, 2009 4:24 PM