Where’s the car?
Theater District Parking Garage aims to make things easier for downtown visitors.
Thanksgiving morning, I drove to downtown Houston to watch the H-E-B parade. I saw an entrance to an underground garage, pulled in, paid $10, parked in a hurry and came up for air and the parade.
It was the first time I used the Theater District Parking Garage. Until this year, I could park in the Chronicle’s garage downtown, but we’ve moved to swanky new quarters at Loop 610 and the Southwest Freeway. Bye bye, free downtown parking.
When it was time to go home, I had absolutely no clue where my car was. No idea what level, what color, which entrance or which lot. I didn’t know there are three different underground parking garages, connected like the Chutes and Ladders kids game, in the downtown Theater District.
Like Diogenes searching ancient Greece for an honest man, I wandered the underground garages for my car … or someone in a golf cart to help me find it.
Took me almost an hour to find my car. Never saw anybody down there rescuing lost souls.
If I got twisted and turned down below, what chance do tens of thousands of tourists coming to Houston for the Super Bowl have? I may have mentioned in a column that the garage might be confusing unless you have a burro.
A few days later, I got an invitation to tour — and learn about — the Theater District Parking Garage. My guides:
• Mario Ariza, chief operating officer, theaters, Houston First.
• Curt Jones, general manager, Republic Parking.
• Daniel Ibarra, project manager, Republic Parking.
• Ian Glowka, parking manager, Republic Parking.
• Steve Bartley, regional manager, Republic Parking.
• Holly Clapham, chief marketing officer, Houston First.
I can draw a crowd. Thanks, all of you. Where were you when I couldn’t find my car? We jumped in a multipassenger golf cart and set off for open spaces.
The Theater District Parking Garage is owned by the city of Houston and operated by the Houston First Corp. through a contract with the Republic Parking System. Republic Parking manages garages in 60 U.S. airports and dozens of metro downtowns.
Built in the 1960s, the Theater District Parking Garage is a complex of three garages — the Civic Center Garage (green signs), Large Tranquility Garage (yellow signs) and Small Tranquility Garage (blue signs) — connected by an underground ramp system. Each of the garages has three levels.
Originally, each level of each garage had its own color scheme — nine confusing colors. There may be people still down there looking for their cars after the Beatles concert at the Sam Houston Coliseum in 1965.
The Theater District Parking Garage stretches under 18 square blocks and has seven entrances. There are 3,369 parking spaces in the Theater District Parking Garage. Almost all of them are occupied by contract customers.
After 5 p.m., there are plenty of spaces available to nightlifers and theatergoers. In 2015, the first stage of a Parking Guidance System was installed. By the end of 2017, 1,000 spaces will have red and green lights over them, indicating whether the space is available. Drivers will be able to see the lights from the end of aisles. If they don’t see a green light, they can try their luck with another aisle.
Over the years, the garage has had to call Animal Control to corral raccoons, snakes, even a bobcat. In 2001, the garage was flooded by Tropical Storm Allison and shut down for three months.
The maximum fee for daily parking is $15. After 5 p.m., the tab goes down to $10. The garage generates $9 million annually. The money goes to pay Republic Parking, security officers, cleaning teams and supplies. A share of the profits goes to maintaining downtown theaters.
Unlike privately owned, above-ground parking lots, the underground garage doesn’t raise its prices during special events. When Taylor Swift played Minute Maid Park last year, some lots close by the ballpark charged $80 to park.
There are two “extended length limousine” golf carts and five traditional golf carts that patrol the garages to assist people hunting for their cars. If you can’t find your car, or an exit, pick up one of 40 “emergency blue light phones” for help. The lots are open 24 hours, seven days a week, no days off. The security office never closes either.
The garage offers a car wash and detailing service on the second level — no reservations required. Just drop off your car in the morning and pick it up shiny and clean at 5 p.m. Prices run from $20 for a basic wash to $150 for the premium detailing package.
So what’s being done to make the underground garage less confusing?
“Improvements are a constant theme when operating a large underground parking facility,” Jones said. “Signage and wayfinding improvements are routinely and continually being made to aid visitors to the facility. Similar to that of many airport parking operations, we continue adding signage to enhance the navigation of our garages.”
Garage management will increase security people and traffic directors (ambassadors) during Super Bowl week. The goal is to double the number of staff working the garage. The NFL is assisting with suggestions on how to deal with tourists’ needs.
All on the golf cart agreed that massive underground parking lots can be mystifying. Take regional manager Bartley. He’s all about parking garages. A few weeks ago, he visited the Galleria for the first time …
Couldn’t find his car on the way out.