THE DECLINE OF THE DRIVE-THROUGH CUSTOMER CONVENIENCE UP AGAINST MONEY, SPACE ISSUES.

Byline: JULIA M. SCOTT Staff Writer

Angelenos drive the most congested freeways and obsessively consult maps and GPS systems. We drive everywhere, for everything, and can rattle off names of highways in our sleep.

But for all the car-centric lifestyle in Los Angeles, drive-through businesses are about as rare as Model T Fords.

Starbucks, a business particularly well-suited to the drive-through model, has 80 locations in the San Fernando Valley. Just six of them are drive-throughs.

The decline of the drive-through, once an icon of L.A. culture, is tied to the real-estate booms of the 1980s and 2000s.

``That land is worth so much more that even to accommodate the drive-through experience it takes up too much space except for places that want to stay retro,'' said Elizabeth Adams, a pop culture expert who directs liberal studies at California State University, Northridge.

Fast-food chains such as In-N-Out and McDonald's, which has 49 drive-throughs in the Valley, say they have so many because their devotion to convenience outweighs the cost.

``We perfected the drive-through,'' McDonald's spokeswoman Jennifer Smith said. ``It's been part of our plan moving forward simply as a part of customer service.'' Nearly all the McDonald's that open come equipped with one, she added.

Outside of fast food, it is difficult to find drive-through service. But a fast-paced lifestyle has left plenty of locals hankering for a return to drive-through convenience.

Possibilities endless

Carole Angulo is one who wishes there were a lot more of them. Angulo has three children -- ages 4, 9 and 11. The 43-year-old from Tarzana rolls her eyes when she thinks of the effort it takes to get her brood out of the car, into a store, and pack them back in.

``It's an extra 20 minutes,'' Angulo said while grabbing coffee, sans children. ``If I have to take three kids out of the car, I'd rather just let them watch movies and stay in the car.''

The possibilities for drive-through businesses are as endless as L.A. traffic.

Coffee shops are an obvious one because so many folks crave a quick hit of Joe.

Jamba Juice, which seems to hire perky employees bent on making the fastest smoothies around, would also do well by a drive-through.

Cell-phone sellers could make quick pitches to rolling customers.

And think how popular drive-through dry cleaners and grocers would be again.

Additions to the nine Alta Dena Dairy drive-throughs in the Valley wouldn't be bad, either.

Makes no cents

If Nevada has drive-through liquor stores and Las Vegas has drive-through wedding chapels, why not drive-through Botox injections in L.A.?

It all comes back to money.

Finding undeveloped land is difficult, and modifying an existing building can be costly.

``One of the biggest issues that we deal with is simply the availability of real estate,'' Starbucks representative Montey Dunn said. Starbucks plans to open more drive-throughs, but Dunn would not say how many.

The right location needs room for roughly seven cars to line up while they wait for their large mocha with two sugars and cream, well stirred. Starbucks' drive-throughs are a bit more expensive to run, but they have higher sales and are more profitable, Dunn said.

Ideal spots also see plenty of street traffic.

But finding the right location is just one of many concerns, according to Alex Fisenko, an Oregon-based consultant who specializes in helping entrepreneurs launch drive-through coffee shops. Navigating the red tape is a big challenge, too.

``About 50 people have tried and hit a brick wall,'' Fisenko said. ``From 254 shops and drive-throughs I have opened across the country, I have never opened one in L.A.''

Like any new business, drive-throughs have to register with the city clerk and, if they are selling food, with the state board of health.

Aside from hamburger joints and a handful of pharmacies and banks, the vast majority of Valley businesses shun drive-throughs for the traditional park and shop method.

Sharon Azal thinks it's better that way, even though she uses drive-throughs such as the Starbucks one in Reseda 10 times a week.

``I think it's better that there are not more drive-throughs,'' said Azal, 24, of Reseda, after picking up a large coffee in her car. ``People get out of their cars and exercise. Once there are drive-throughs, people go there for the convenience and get fat.''

Santa Clarita's draw

Santa Clarita, however, has taken advantage of drive-throughs. Of some 6,000 businesses, about 100 are drive-throughs, city spokeswoman Gail Ortiz said.

``Businesses out here tend to be really savvy and they understand people are very busy and we've got a lot of families and a lot of little kids,'' Ortiz said. ``Sometimes it's hard to get in and out of the car, so when they can offer that convenience it gives them a leg up.''

In November, Santa Clarita gave out 800 flu shots in less than three hours by setting up a drive-through clinic.

Even the schools use a drive-through to drop off students. Fifth- and sixth-graders open car doors and scoop out young students so their parents don't have to get out of the car and do it themselves, said traffic Sgt. Richard Cohen of the Santa Clarita sheriff's station, which runs the program. The method, called the student valet program, takes less than a minute per car.

``It helps to alleviate traffic and makes it safer for kids to be dropped off at school,'' Cohen said.

Not everyone thinks drive-through businesses are a good idea.

Christina Hock believes too many of them would turn Angelenos into ``hermits and they don't talk to people,'' she said leaving Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf in Tarzana. Plus, drive-throughs get her order wrong four out of 10 times.

Still, Hock can't completely resist drive-throughs.

``I would like to walk in, but I don't have the time,'' she said.

julia.scott(at)dailynews.com

[phone]

CAPTION(S):

4 photos

Photo:

(1 -- color) A customer gets a hot coffee at the drive-through Starbucks on Reseda Boulevard. Starbucks has 80 locations in the Valley, but just six are drive-throughs.

(2 -- color) Lunchtime is a busy time at the In-N-Out drive-through on Ventura Boulevard in Tarzana on Thursday. Many prize the convenience that a drive-through offers.

Tina Burch/Staff Photographer

(3) Car service is a blast from the past that Kip Kennedy of Tarzana enjoys in 1990 as he pays carhop Trica Braschi at the Bob's Big Boy in Canoga Park.

Daily News

(4 -- color) Cashier Milad Hann goes out to help a customer in the drive-through lane at the Alta Dena Neighborhood Dairy Store in West Hills on Thursday.