Parking magic: 39 cars fit in space big enough for 7 Is this purely automated Oakland structure the future?

A car being lifted to its parking spot inside the Hive. A car being lifted to its parking spot inside the Hive. Photo: CityLift Parking Photo: CityLift Parking Image 1 of / 8 Caption Close Parking magic: 39 cars fit in space big enough for 7 1 / 8 Back to Gallery

In Oakland, the concept of high-density parking has been taken to new levels, seven of them to be precise.

Recently, the Oakland's CityLift Parking held a grand opening ceremony for the Hive, the first fully automated parking structure in Northern California. Located near the corner of Broadway and 24th, the 7-story structure is built on a 1,600-square-foot footprint, about the size of seven parking spaces, and it can hold up to 39 vehicles.

The Hive looks like a parking fortress, albeit a sleekly designed one. There is no room for people here, only stacks of cars. And from the looks of the above video, it could make parking your car a bit of an event in itself.

After pulling into the Hive, drivers simply leave their cars in a staging area, press some buttons and then automation takes over: Their car is whisked away and lifted to a spot somewhere within the structure. Retrieval is just as simple: Press in your space number, and your car is soon returned.

And no, not anyone can retrieve your car from the Hive. CityLift spokesman Raymond Kahue assures us, "There is always an attendant on duty."

For those looking to experience the Hive, public parkers are allowed to pull in after 5 p.m. daily. During the hours of 8-5 only are monthly parkers allowed.

No one enters the Hive except technicians, which adds a security feature for those worried about their car being keyed or broken into. As CityLift CEO Scott Gable told KTVU, "The recent wave of smash-and-grabs that we've had in the Bay Area is not an issue."

The creators of the Hive, CityLift and Signature developers, also tout the structure's environmental benefits and how it would save on greenhouse gas emissions. That's partly because cars won't drive around in it. CityLift has another fully automated lot currently under construction in Long Island City.