One hundred and forty dollars can buy a lot. Two pairs of Adidas Superstars. A nonstop flight from Seattle to Las Vegas. 280 McDonald’s McNuggets in 70 four-piece boxes. Unfortunately, one thing 140 dollars can’t buy is a guaranteed student spot in the Liberty parking lot.
On campus, especially with the weather, parking spaces are not guaranteed when students arrive in the morning. However, not all parking spots are being taken simply because heaping piles of snow are blocking banks of spaces—some students without parking permits are taking spots other students paid for.
“I was really pissed so I parked in the visitor’s parking so I didn’t park in someone else’s spot,” junior Caitlyn Croppi said after finding a car parked in her assigned space one morning.
The standard procedure for a stolen spot is to park in the visitor lot and tell Campus Security Jon Kinsley the space number and the license number of the car in the spot. He then attempts to locate the person in the space and have it vacated as soon as possible. However, other duties often restrict the amount of time Kinsley can spend clearing student spots, especially if the person is hard to find.
It seems spaces are being taken every day, be it by snow or sophomores, but as the weather improves, the number of people forced to park in the visitor area because of weather-related issues will decrease. However, not much more can be done about intentionally taken spots or confused substitute teachers accidentally parking in student spaces. The parking problem even pushes beyond Liberty lot borders.
“On campus, Mr. Kinsley handles the parking spaces. However, off-campus I handle the parking on the side streets,” Deputy Officer Cindy Hale said. At this stage of the year, on the sides of streets where parking is clearly indicated as illegal at any time, students continue to abandon their cars during the school day, risking infractions.
“If you see a sign, please note the indication on the sign and don’t park there if you’re not supposed to. At this time in the year, I have to write those infractions,” Hale said. Officer Hale recommends only parking in legal areas when parking off-campus.