The new project would move an airport service road that runs north and south to the east, toward the middle of the airport, where it would bisect the Star Park Lot and facilitating more direct access, Gill said. "That will assist in integrating the real estate on the Star Park property more strategically into the valet inventory," Gill said.
The project will also install a new building near the existing drop-off area that will serve as the center of valet operations, where customers can retrieve their cars after a return flight, Gill said. In accordance with an agreement with the city of Burbank, which allowed the authority to purchase the Star Park property in June 2005, the $13 million will also fund cosmetic improvements, such as repaving, landscaping and increased lighting, Gill said.
"It's really fully developing the property for most efficient use and meeting all the city's requirements for landscaping and lighting on the property as well," Gill said.
When the authority originally put the project out for bid in September 2005, proposals were in the neighborhood of $20 million, due to spikes in oil prices. As a result, the authority was forced to downscale the extent of improvements to comply with the allotted $13 million budget, Gill said.
"We kind of had to revisit the project ? and the scope of the project ? and trim things down so we could get the essential parts of it done," Gill said. To bring the project within budget range, the authority scrapped plans for elevator and stairway improvements for the parking structure and cosmetic enhancements for the valet-center building, such as sculptures, a garden and a fountain. But the project as proposed will result in a more efficient operation because high valet-traffic volumes will be directed away from the airport's main roadway, Airport Authority Commissioner Charlie Lombardo said.
"So many of the folks in valet are business travelers, so it gets a lot of activity," Lombardo said.
