Two months ahead of schedule, the five-story, 500-stall Burien Park-and-Ride Garage was dedicated Aug. 30.

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The garage was actually opened to the public on Saturday, Aug. 27. The early opening eased the burden on patrons who brought their cars to the transit center. During garage construction, they had to slog back and forth from the center on Southwest 148th Street and 4th Avenue Southwest to the temporary parking lot at the old BBC Dodge site at First Avenue South and South 148th Street.

The dedication and ribboncutting ceremonies drew the "usual suspects" as U.S. Rep. Jim McDermott (D-7) joked in addressing a group of state, county, city and private company officials as well as staffers from Metro Transit and Sound Transit.

Congressman McDermott said he hopes Burien is not redistricted out of his congressional district because he enjoys seeing the start and finish of worthwhile projects such as the garage and Burien Town Square. He lamented that earmarking funds for projects by lawmakers is now out of favor.

Pointing toward the garage, McDermott declared, "That is a good earmark." McDermott noted the garage will help increase bus ridership.

"It's going to be a transit world because no matter who the president is, gas will never be $2 a gallon again," he added.

King County Executive Dow Constantine recalled that 10 months ago he attended the garage's groundbreaking.

"I like groundbreakings but I love ribboncuttings even more," Constantine declared.

He said the garage's completion could not have come at a better time because the day before the state Department of Transportation had announced a nine-day closure of the Alaskan Way Viaduct beginning on Oct. 9.

Viaduct traffic disruptions in Seattle's SODO area are expected to continue past 2015. Beginning Oct. 1, Metro will be adding service on Route 120 between the Burien Transit Center and downtown Seattle as part of the viaduct construction mitigation program.

Constantine noted the next project phase is a transit-oriented mixed-use housing project planned for south of the garage. The garage has a total of 504 stalls with 42 surface lot stalls north of the garage and kiss-and-ride drop-off spots.

The five-story structure has 10 electric vehicle charging stations on the first floor with a capacity for 40 more charging stations. County staffers brought two of the county's electric Nissan Leaf vanpool cars to the ceremony. Constantine noted King County is the first public agency in the country to institute an electric-car vanpool.

King County Councilman Joe McDermott noted that his favorite toy as a toddler was a Fisher-Price parking garage with elevators. Councilman McDermott said the Burien transit center will be a vital hub for area transportation.

The RapidRide Line F, which will connect Burien, Tukwila and Renton, is set to begin service in two years, McDermott reported.

Councilwoman Julia Patterson said, "South King County is starved for transportation." She said that the south county has more vehicle commuters than any other county area.

"This gives us an option to get out of our cars," Patterson added.

She suggested that Sound Transit consider extending light rail to Burien in its next construction phase.

"We've got the parking and the density and it's time for light rail to come to Burien," Patterson said.

Patterson noted added transit infrastructure would help fight blight in the south suburban communities and be a great catalyst for economic development.

Emergency-alarm stations and security cameras are located on each of the five floors. Bike racks are available between the surface parking area and the garage.

The $20.8 million project was funded with $14.7 million from Sound Transit, $5.9 million from the Federal Transit Administration and $300,000 from Metro. The Puget Sound Regional Council selected the project for federal funding.

The garage was built on the site of the former Burien park-and-ride lot that was constructed in 1978.

For the new facility, Metro and Sound Transit partnered with Alliance Wasatch, a private developer. Charles Pankow Builders built the garage. King County entered into a lease/lease-back contract with Alliance to fund the project with private equity funds and a construction loan from Wells Fargo Bank.

The county will purchase the garage for a pre-determined price using Sound Transit funding.

Here is the press release from King County:

King County Metro Transit and Sound Transit were joined by partners and elected officials today, as King County Executive Dow Constantine led the dedication of a new parking garage at the Burien Park-and-Ride. The garage was completed two months ahead of schedule, as the second phase of a major transit hub in downtown Burien.

“We are creating a sustainable transportation hub in downtown Burien faster than anyone imagined, and completion of this garage couldn’t be timelier with construction on the Highway 99 corridor ramping up,” said Executive Constantine. “With more service on Route 120 to downtown Seattle starting Oct. 1 as part of viaduct mitigation, and RapidRide from Burien to Renton coming in two years, local residents will have more travel options and more convenient choices – just when they need them most.”

The Burien Park-and-Ride garage opened to the public last Saturday. It features more than 500 parking stalls – including 10 electric vehicle charging stations equipped with pay meters and credit card readers. It is located adjacent to King County Metro Transit’s Burien Transit Center, which is the future terminus for RapidRide Line F connecting Burien, Tukwila and Renton. It is also the first major Sound Transit 2 (ST2) capital project to open for service. The ST2 ballot measure was approved by voters in 2008.

Yesterday, the Washington State Department of Transportation announced a nine-day closure of the Alaskan Way Viaduct set to begin Oct. 21. And even when the viaduct reopens with a new south-end detour, construction and traffic disruptions in the SODO area are expected to last beyond 2015.

Starting Oct. 1, Metro will be adding service on the Rt. 120 between the Burien Transit Center and downtown Seattle as part of the state-funded viaduct construction mitigation program. There will be three new morning trips, and five more in the afternoon.

"The completion of this garage significantly expands parking capacity for residents of Burien and the surrounding areas, making it easier for people to ride Metro and Sound Transit buses,” said Sound Transit Board and Metropolitan King County Councilmember Joe McDermott. "I’m proud that the Burien area is the first in line to benefit from the investments in new transit facilities that voters approved in 2008 as part of Sound Transit 2.”

The regional transit agency funded the new park-and-ride as a way to improve regional transit connections for South County and other residents.

“Sound Transit’s $14.7 million contribution to the Burien Transit Center's parking expansion represents a key transit investment in the South King subarea,” said Sound Transit Board Chair and Snohomish County Executive Aaron Reardon. “As the first capital structure completed under the voter-approved ST2 program, the new garage and parking lot offer additional capacity for south county transit users, and support economic growth for Burien's revitalized downtown by creating more opportunities for transit-oriented development.”

The garage is the second of three key components in Burien’s downtown transit improvements. In 2009, Metro opened the Burien Transit Center, located east of the new park-and-ride. It is currently served by Metro routes 120, 121, 122, 123, 131, 132, 133, 134, 139, 140, 180, and ST Express 560. Metro’s RapidRide F is scheduled to begin service in 2013.
The final project in that location is the future Transit Oriented Development (TOD) mixed-use housing to be built south of the parking garage.

"Today is a game changer for transit in South King County,” said Metropolitan King County Councilmember and Sound Transit Boardmember Julia Patterson. "South King County residents desperately need better transportation connections to the rest of the region. I am proud that Sound Transit was able to partner with King County to fund a project that will move the people of Burien and South King County to jobs, schools and recreation, with even more transportation options still to come as each new part of the project becomes a reality.”

The garage was constructed on the site on the former Burien Park-and-Ride lot, which was originally opened in 1978. To build the new garage, Metro and Sound Transit partnered with private developer, Alliance Wasatch I, LLC. The garage was constructed by Charles Pankow Builders, Ltd.

The new park-and-ride has a total of 504 parking stalls both inside the five-floor garage and in the surface lot immediately to the north, an increase of 161 stalls over the former park-and-ride. In the new outside lot, there are accessible parking stalls, some large enough for vans, and also kiss-and-ride drop-off spots with a five-minute parking limit.
Emergency-alarm stations and security cameras are located in each corner of every floor in the garage. Bike racks are located between the surface parking area and the transit center.

Funding for the $20.8 million garage includes: $14.7 million from Sound Transit; $ 5.9 million from the Federal Transit Administration; and $300,000 from Metro. The Puget Sound Regional Council selected the project for federal funding. The garage will be owned and operated by Metro.

“Two years ago, the new transit center got us off to a great start by increasing our investment in transportation infrastructure in the Burien area,” said Congressman Jim McDermott. “Construction of both the transit center and this new garage put a lot of people to work, and these facilities will now make it easier for people to commute around from the Burien area in a way that is better for the environment.”

The Burien Transit Center parking expansion also represents an innovative public-private partnership between King County, Sound Transit, and Alliance to fund the design and construction of the garage. The county has entered into a lease/lease-back contract with Alliance to finance the project with private equity funds and a construction loan from Wells Fargo Bank. Alliance financed and constructed the project, and the county will now purchase the garage for a fixed, pre-determined price using the Sound Transit funding.

“The City of Burien is very pleased with the new garage,” said Mayor Joan McGilton. “Our old park-and-ride had become too small, and this nice new facility should serve our community well. We see this project as another big step forward in our continuing effort to develop downtown Burien into a vibrant place to live, work and play. We appreciate the efforts of King County Metro, Sound Transit and the other partners to help turn our dream of a transit-friendly downtown into reality.”