Meet 1706 Rittenhouse’s Robot Garage

Posted on | May 12, 2010 | 1 Comment

Inquirer real estate reporter Alan Heavens takes a look at 1706 Rittenhouse Square Street‘s Jetsons-like automated parking system.Heavens writes that after a resident drives his car onto a pallet in the building, “the system takes the car and its pallet automatically to the nearest empty space on one of four levels below. On the way down, the car is turned 180 degrees and backed into the space, so when it is retrieved, the car can be driven straight out to the street.” Automated garages have been popular in Europe for some time, but they’re still rare in the U.S.; the video above shows one of the handful of robot garages in New York. (The one in 1706 is Philly’s first.) The condo’s developer said he decided to go with a robot garage because the building’s small footprint meant a traditional underground garage wasn’t doable. Installing the system cost more than $140,000 for each of its 64 spaces.

adapted from Brownstoner Philadelphia

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