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Antelope Valley Telebusiness Center Phase I
and Antelope Valley Telebusiness Center Phase II

The first telecommuter began using the Antelope Valley Telebusiness Center in February 1993. The second center (Antelope Valley Telebusiness Center Phase II) was opened in April 1994, in response to the Northridge earthquake in January. Due to the extensive structural damage caused to roadways and buildings by the earthquake, the first center was filled within a week of the disaster. When the second center was opened to accommodate the increased demand, Health Net (the largest user at the first center) expanded the number of its employees allowed to telecommute, and all of them moved to the second center so they could be focused in one place.

The second center is located only two blocks from the first, and it contains 40 workstations, 35 of which are leased by Health Net for its workers. Of the remaining five stations, three continue to be leased by Chubb Insurance, one is leased by UCLA, and one is vacant. The second center has a large multi-purpose room with a kitchen, which can also be used as a training center. The first center has five private offices and 20 open-area workstations. Currently 10 workstations are leased to six different employers. The two centers combined are approximately 80% leased; the site administrator estimated that 70% of the stations are occupied each day. The County of Los Angeles utilizes unleased spaces for infrequent and unscheduled users who can benefit from the facility. They also are trying to meet the needs of government agencies that will close some of their local offices next month. They would like to allow local employees displaced by the shutdowns to telecommute one or two days per week instead of driving an extended distance every day. Other agencies are cutting costs by changing to a four-day, 40-hour week that does not fit some employees schedules--those employees may be able to continue working their normal five-day schedule by using the telecenter one day each week.

The learning service outlined in the December report has proven successful. The site administrator collected travel data from 25 students who attended classes at the telecenter during the spring, and she determined that the program saved 3,974 driving miles per week for those students. This agreement has also yielded a $400 monthly revenue increase for the telecenters program. There are currently four summer classes being offered at the center through California State University-Northridge, and an agreement has been signed to conduct five classes at the center during the fall session beginning in September 1995.

Other services that continue to be offered include the loan of laptop computers and rental of videoconferencing facilities. Six laptop computers are currently being used. Several of them are stationed at area businesses and the local Transportation Management Organization to make them as convenient for users as possible. Unlike some of the other telecenters, the site administrator has not seen an increase in demand for videoconferencing service in her area.

These are the first telecenters to report that they are successfully operating with no external support. Each of the telecenters currently charges $380 per month for a cubicle and $420 per month for an office; these rates are flat fees that include the use of all office equipment. Monthly revenue will increase with additional distance learning classes.

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