The Shorthorn - Central Park

Central Park

Written by manager

Sunday, 24 August 2003 11:00 PM

Good spaces cost more, but at least the revenue goes to parking improvements On the first day of school in the fall, parking is always a crazy mess. Unlike later in the semester when students start to miss class, every student will be fighting for the closest parking space. This fall, though, it will be both better and worse than usual. On the up side, there are more spaces. Construction that has plagued the campus all summer to repave old lots and create new ones has given us at least 900 more spaces. The Physical Plant director was creative in the restriping of existing lots to create 350 to 400 more spaces than expected. The good news is that the university is trying to keep up with growing enrollment and has alleviated some of the parking concerns. Officials have taken appropriate steps to address student parking concerns and have shown creativity in adding more spaces than expected. Good for them. And bad for them: There are different parking decals now — $72 for premium spots or $60 for remote area parking. This will most likely cause additional confusion for the first couple of weeks — more so for returning students than new ones. Those who purchase the remote parking decal will have to find out where they are no longer allowed to park. Breaking from old ways is hard to do. With the two-tier parking system in place, which in part paid for the renovation and construction projects, people might experience a lot of slow traffic in lots during the first week while students search for the appropriate places. We have reservations about the two-tier parking but, even with the preference parking system in place, the physical plant should be commended for doing such a great job to repave, restripe and create new parking lots. So, students shouldn’t be too frustrated today when they traverse campus in search for a space. Chances are, there will be a space available somewhere, with 1,250 to 1,300 total new spaces. The parking lots will be smoother, cleaner and (appear to be) bigger than they were last semester. And campus police will issue tickets for parking in the wrong place, but a first offense can usually be appealed at the parking office. Editorial Round-Up The issue: There may be nearly 1,300 new parking spaces due to additional lots and efficient restriping of existing lots. Our View: Students shouldn’t be too frustrated with parking on Monday and should instead commend the Physical Plant for the extra spaces. Still, the two-tier parking system is a bad idea.
Views: 107 | E-mail

Be first to comment this article

Last Updated ( Tuesday, 01 September 2009 06:33 PM )

< Prev		Next >

[ Back ]