Senators grinned to themselves Nov. 12 as the parking proposal vote results were read. President Noam Berns declared the outcome: the newest parking proposal passed.
The passed proposal was the third one drafted by Student Affairs and Campus Development committee members. It was based on the current parking rules, with a few key differences.
Under the proposal, upperclassmen can park everywhere except in faculty lots. Freshmen are able to park in the Sports Center parking lot, in addition to the general parking along Kunk’s Drive.
The proposal also limits faculty parking to Krebs, Blackington and the Engineering and Science Building parking lots. This allows upperclassmen to park in the Biddle lot.
Senator Josh Beck, who helped present an opposing proposal, said the passed proposal’s shift in parking lots will be beneficial to students.
“Freshmen will have added convenient spots to park, and, in return, this will open up upper classmen parking in the north lodges,” he said.
Beck said freshmen will be more likely to park in their designated area if it’s more convenient for them, which will lessen the strain on upperclassmen parking.
In addition to changing designated parking, the proposal also lowers fees — a parking pass fee to $80 from $85 per year — and guarantees students 24-hour notice if they need to move their vehicle.
Student Affairs and Campus Development committee member Allen Skoranski said the proposal was a step in the right direction.
“We’re going to start making small changes and work our way up,” he said.
Skoranski said at his committee’s meeting that senators can use the results of this change as a springboard for future change. Senators can evaluate the proposal’s outcome and consider it in future parking proposals.
The next step in the process is submitting the proposal to administrators and waiting for a formal response, Skoranski said. After that, senators and administrators are to cooperate to get the most out of the proposal.
Skoranski said implementation is based on administrators’ response time, but he thinks the new designations could go into effect this spring, and the new prices next fall.
