When commuting students returned to school last week, they were faced with several changes to parking lots across campus.
Gary Graham, director of the Office of Parking, Traffic and Transportation, said the parking lot near the Life Sciences Building has been eliminated so construction can begin on the Choppin Annex building.
Graham said 90 parking spaces in the Parker Coliseum commuter lot have been designated for staff to make up for the loss of parking near the Life Sciences building.
The other 460 will still be used for commuters, he said.
Parking also reopened a staff parking lot this semester that had previously been under construction.
Emmett David, director of Facility Development, said the Indian Mounds parking lot has been reopened, and the new design better protects the trees in the area.
The website also states the parking lot on the future site of a residential college on the north side of campus near the Pentagon will be closed soon for construction.
Graham said on-campus residents who park there can now begin parking in the North PMAC lot and the West Graham lot. These lots are no longer commuter parking — they will be used for residents only.
Graham said the area where the old Alex Box Stadium once stood will become a parking lot for commuters when deconstruction on it is completed in September to offset the now repurposed commuter spots.
Graham said the office has sold 13,607 commuter parking passes so far this year compared to 13,397 at this time last year.
His department plans to begin construction on a multi-level parking garage in November or December, but spots there will not be available for commuters.
Graham said while the construction of a parking garage specifically for commuters isn’t out of the question, it may not be as convenient as students think.
Graham said a parking garage would likely fill up as quickly as the parking lots do now.
“If you showed up for class at 10 a.m., you’d end up on the fourth or fifth story,” Graham said. “By the time you walk from there to class, the time will be about the same as [parking in a lot].”
Graham said an average parking lot costs $2,000 to $3,000 to construct, as opposed to parking garages, which cost about $15,000 to $20,000 to build.
Graham said he recommends students who park in commuter lots try to take a bus from the lot to their classes.
Graham said the Downtown-Vet bus route runs past the parking lot across the railroad tracks and can take students to the main part of campus.
Thomas Hinkel, economics junior, said he takes the bus from his apartment because he doesn’t want to deal with the hassle of parking on campus.
“If there’s a bus system, why pay every day to drive in?” Hinkel said.
Graham said Parking offers about 2,500 parking spaces for commuters across the railroad tracks from campus on Skip Bertman Drive.
Zack Mire, kinesiology sophomore, said he drives to campus every day but would think twice before walking from the lot across the tracks.
“Not in this weather,” Mire said. “It is way too hot right now to walk that far.”
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Contact Rachel Warren at [email protected]
Parking lots still changing on campus
August 30, 2010