Searching for Solutions: Parking!

As a teacher I see problems all the time and my natural inclination is to solve them! Whether it's a sickled foot or a lifted hip, I want to help make dancing easier for my students. I want them to do their best.

But I can't help them do their best if they can't get to class!

Ballerina Olga Lepeshinskaya

 Dancers in LA are constantly fighting traffic. If they have to drive a long distance, inevitably they will be sitting in traffic, their hip flexors working constantly and putting extra stress on their backs and Achilles tendons. And don't get me started on anxiety: am I going to be late for plies? Will there be room for me at the barre? Will I get a chance to put on my leotard before I run in?

And this one: Where will I park? Yup. In LA it's all about parking. Where, how long, and how much. Just recently a parking lot that was right next to Dance Arts Academy on La Brea and Wilshire closed so a lot of my students who were used to parking there no longer can. I wish I could magically make all the meters free and the lots open but since I can't, I have the next best thing: options!

If you're a student of mine at Dance Arts Academy and you were used to parking at the bank, here are a few options for you:

*Free street parking after 6PM:
--8th Street and 9th Street west of Cochran
--Cochran between 8th Street & Wilshire
*Metered parking until 8PM, most free after 8PM:
--south and north of Wilshire on Detroit, Cloverdale, and Cochran (as well as other streets farther west)

**Pay lots/structures:

--South Cloverdale between Wilshire and 8th ($1/hr)

--apartment/retail bldg across the street from DAA at La Brea & Wilshire (enter on 8th Street where it says Retail, first 15 mins free, $2.50/30 mins, credit/debit only)

You can park on both La Brea and Wilshire after 7PM (which is handy for a night when we have a workshop at 8PM).

 

And finally, when in doubt, look online! Here is a link to a website that lists free, metered, and lot parking in the immediate area (scroll down through the bottom list because they range in price):

http://en.parkopedia.com/parking/miracle_mile_wilshire/

Another one from LADOT is very handy and easy to use. Also, at the top of the page are links to 3 mobile apps that you can download:

http://www.laexpresspark.org/

I hope this helps get you to class and maybe lessens the parking anxiety. We are dancers; we are flexible!
Happy dancing~