Council approves marine‑hardened escalator replacement at Metlox parking structure; staff to study future redundant elevator options

The City Council approved staff's recommendation to replace the Metlox parking structure escalators in-kind with marine‑hardened equipment and to prepare plans and specifications for procurement. Staff presented two options: (1) replace the existing escalators with marine-grade units (preferred, estimated replacement cost presented in the item and budgeted in the CIP); or (2) install two new elevators and refurbish the adjacent egress stair, which staff estimated would be costlier and more structurally invasive.

Acting City Engineer Gil Gamboa said escalators provide throughput of roughly 6,000 people per hour and that the existing escalators were nearing the end of their expected life after about 20 years of service. Staff noted maintenance challenges in a marine environment and recommended material and equipment hardening plus a maintenance agreement; the Tollton Group and downtown stakeholders expressed support for the escalator replacement and potential cost-sharing on maintenance.

Council unanimously approved moving forward with the escalator replacement and asked staff to study a future redundant elevator location as part of the CIP planning cycle. Council members stressed public access and ADA considerations; staff noted the existing elevator will also require ongoing maintenance and that an additional elevator would likely be a future CIP item.

Next steps: staff will finalize design, seek cost-sharing agreements for maintenance with the Metlox operator, and return with specifications for procurement. The city's Capital Improvement Program includes funding for this replacement in the current fiscal cycle.