Zipcar to Open First SoCal Branch in Hollywood

Make room, hipsters: Zipsters may soon be flocking to Zipcar's first Southern California office location—on Cahuenga Boulevard in Hollywood, across the street from Space 15 Twenty.

With the smell of fresh paint still in the air, Zipcar, the car-sharing service, opened its doors at 1529 N. Cahuenga Blvd. Thursday morning for an early peek at its 1,200-square-foot office, which is still to be furnished.

Zipcar plans to open its Cahuenga location officially in early December. The company currently serves its Los Angeles members primarily through the Internet.

At Thursday's preview event, Mark Norman, president and chief operating officer of Zipcar, handed Los Angeles City Council President Eric Garcetti an oversized Zipcar keycard.

"Here is the new key to the city," Norman joked, alluding to the way in which Zipcar members access the rental cars, by swiping a key card over a transmitter on the front window of a vehicle.

Zipcar aims to provide an affordable and convenient mode of transportation with its car-sharing business model. A one-time application fee is $25, an annual membership costs $50 and, depending on the car model and day of the week, vehicle rental starts at $8 an hour or $66 a day. Gas, insurance, reserved parking spots and 180 driving miles are included.

The Toyota Prius, Nissan Sentra, Scion xB, Mazda 3, Honda CR-V and Honda Civic are among the models in the Hollywood fleet, positioned at six locations: 1555 Vine St., 1700 Ivar St., 1414 Wilcox Ave., 6793 Yucca St., 5512 Hollywood Blvd. and 1529 N. Cahuenga.

Zipcar occupies 16 parking spaces in Hollywood and more than 120 throughout Los Angeles.

Collen McCormick, a spokeswoman for Zipcar, says the company will hire about 10 people to work in the Hollywood office. Job openings will be posted on the Zipcar website.

Coming up: This weekend Hollywood Patch takes a closer look at the growth of the car-sharing pilot program in the community. Check back for the story.

Do you think a shared-car program like Zipcar is a good fit for the community? Tell us in the comments.