County Parking Structures Suggested for Arena : Proposal: Supervisor William G. Steiner says garages could make money and ease shortage of spaces at Anaheim facility.

With the new Anaheim Arena suffering a severe shortage of parking spaces, the county is being asked to begin studying ways to smooth traffic flow and build parking garages in the area.

Orange County Supervisor William G. Steiner, whose district includes Anaheim, is advancing the proposal as a possible revenue-producer for county government in a venture that has “countywide significance.”

Although the arena has won rave reviews for its fine marbled interior and excellent sight lines for sporting and other entertainment events, parking has been a particular sore point since the facility’s opening last month.

During the inaugural Barry Manilow concert, for example, arena managers were faced with the prospect of accommodating about 12,000 fans with only 4,500 available parking slots on site.

Currently, three county-owned parcels surrounding the arena are being leased by the city of Anaheim as open-air parking for 1,700 spaces. Steiner is talking about building multilevel parking on that land.

Although the county’s worsening financial picture has stalled such multimillion-dollar capital projects as a new jail in recent years, officials say garages in the arena area could make the county money.

“There may be opportunities to assist the city of Anaheim in addressing arena parking problems and maximize lease revenue to the county through construction and operation of other parking-related improvements on these and other county-owned parcels,” Steiner said in a letter that was circulated Thursday to other county supervisors.

In his letter, scheduled for consideration Tuesday by the Board of Supervisors, Steiner has asked that the County Environmental Management Agency study ways to improve traffic circulation in the area and examine the profitability of parking structures on the county-owned properties in the arena area.

“Inasmuch as the arena has countywide significance and improved circulation and parking access benefits all county residents and will require direct county involvement, I request that the . . . action be approved,” the supervisor said.

Arena General Manager Brad Mayne said he has met recently with both Steiner and Anaheim city officials to discuss possible improvements in the area.

Steiner “is very much interested in helping,” Mayne said. “There are a whole lot of resources being thrown at this issue.”

Anaheim City Manager James D. Ruth said Friday that the county’s proposed involvement was welcome and that Steiner has been “very cooperative” in recent talks.

“They (county officials) want to see what they can do to assist the city and possibly create revenue for the county at the same time,” Ruth said. “It is a nice gesture on (Steiner’s) part.”

Ruth said the county has indicated it will review the possibility of garage construction on property near the arena, but he admitted that this type of project could be extremely costly. Construction estimates obtained by the city for similar projects have run between $8,000 to $10,000 per parking space, he said.

“The county wants to look at it to see if it makes sense,” Ruth added.