Riverside and Rose Towers residents must cope with reduced parking space as a result of construction of new residential housing.
Students in the Purple Residential Zone on the north side of campus who have parked illegally have received $50 tickets on their cars, along with a notice of their options to deal with the situation: they may trade in their parking pass for a fall semester Ferguson Parking Deck pass to avoid the fine.
In the spring, when another parking lot is scheduled for completion, students will be given the opportunity to purchase another purple residential pass for $120.
Ronnie Robertson, director of transportation services, said offering students parking in the Ferguson Deck was the only viable option.
“The only parking area that had availability that was within walking distance was the Ferguson Parking Deck,” Robertson said. “Since it was not adjacent to these residential areas, it was determined that 350 students would be given the opportunity to receive a free parking permit if they chose to be zoned for the Ferguson Parking deck and not the Purple Residential zone.”
Robertson also said 200 of the 350 students offered the free parking have opted for the Ferguson Parking Deck pass.
“Once we reach our goal of 350 students from this area parking in the Ferguson Parking Deck, we anticipate the congestion in this area will be eliminated,” he said.
Construction of the North Bluffs Residential Community significantly decreased both Riverside’s and Rose Towers’ parking lot capacity.
Henry Weatherly, a freshman majoring in pre-law, said the options provided by transportation services to fix the issue are a “joke.”
“I have to either give up my pass for the option to park farther away from my dorm, or I can pay $50 and continue to deal with this mess that was created by really bad planning,” he said.
Kyle Raburn, a freshman majoring in business, said a police officer in the Riverside lot told him he would be able to park on the curb without being ticketed because of the construction situation, yet he still received a ticket.
“I circled for 30 minutes without finding a spot,” he said. “After I saw other cars park on the curb, I asked a cop if I would get ticketed if I parked on the curb. He said I wouldn’t. Of course, the next morning I had a $50 ticket on my car.”
Cameron Bailey, a freshman majoring in chemical engineering, said he has managed to avoid getting a ticket, but he believes that Transportation Services has done a poor job planning parking across campus.
“This is a nightmare,” he said. “I haven’t gotten a ticket yet, but it takes me forever to find a spot to park; I just don’t want to have to walk that far just to get something out of my car.
“Whoever manages parking screwed up bad this time. The [Commuter West Lot] is also a huge mess; I hear people complain about it every day.”
