Show 11 1 I S j v- v No Parking Zone ZoneS 1 By Jill Holland Copy Editor tor Parking problems on campus have resulted in accidents hostility threats frustration stress and tar tar- diness What are the solutions What will the future hold Students faculty and staff have a long list of questions A caring listening and cooperative ear with authority was found in the interview with the manager of Parking Services Shane Crabtree In March when Crabtree took over the department his management management management man man- strategy was made clear to his staff Our number one priority priority priority is Customer Service We serve the students if they were not here we would have no purpose here said Crabtree All the parking parking parking park park- ing problems currently are handled as part of Crabtree s job tion The hazards of red curb parking has become a necessity but a hazardous and a temporary one When a vehicle parks too close to the end of a curb visibility visibility visibility is hampered and accidents occur Unsafe parking will ensure you a ticket said Crabtree When you have parked hazardously hazardously hazardously haz haz- and there is a genuine concern for safety student reco records ds are searched to physically find the student in class so they can remove their vehicle This is time consuming and unpleasant for all involved The alternative which r. r Jo w. w i w w Y 4 1 y a N 4 y N 1 4 4 W U ft Photo By Shane Crabtree Soccer Parking j. j Crabtree goes to great length to avoid is towing Parking Services has no towing trucks so they have to call outside commercial busi busi- ness This then becomes the financial financial financial finan finan- cial responsibility of the owner A necessity which has inconvenienced the faculty and r students is the parking on the soc- soc cor field I 1 got permission to use the field for f r three weeks but had to extend the use to four said Crabtree Normally the parking problem eases up after the first three weeks because students from other campus have their schedules straightened straighten d out paid their tuition and bought their books Record student enrollment enrollment enrollment enroll enroll- ment has exacerbated the parking problem does not not- want to turn any qualified student away way so they keep looking for solutions A major problem caused by the parking issue is legitimate f tardiness Tardiness causes problems problems lems for both the student who is lost when he misses the beginning of the instructor who doesn t know if the student is unreliable or really had a parking problem Keeping the lanes open enough to satisfy the Fire Marshall s concern for student safety must be a priority Responses delayed even by minutes minutes min min- utes can cause major problems Everything done so far has been small temporary fixes with long term tenn solutions still being searched for The office is brainstorming brainstorming brain- brain storming and listening carefully to to help solve the lem The most frequently suggested suggested suggested sug sug- solution is a parking ture The cost is staggering at 16 thousand dollars per parking space When Crabtree did the math for cars he was startled at the 8 million dollar figure This expense would have to be passed on to the student Another concern about parking structures is the security issue Crime is notoriously high in parking structures Invisible r spaces are created where even cameras cannot see Theft assaults and rapes would be a r concern Maintenance js high since surveillance surveillance surveillance you need good lighting lance cameras a security force i. y s. r. r hand h- h k and janitorial services UT UTA visited the campus S at the College Center on October I II 1 th where an open forum took place The goal of the forum was for UTA to learn how to best accommodate students possibly with more bus schedules at convenient convenient convenient con con- times Supplementing the cost of a bus pass could be a solution solution solution tion for some UTA has been 1 approached in the ope operation tion of a train traveling down 2200 0 West to the school S The Utah Department of Transportation met with Crabtree and engineers on campus to see if ti there may be better ways of organizing organizing organ organ- J izing parking They took aerial photos and drove around the campus campus campus cam cam- pus and evaluated the possibility of striping re-striping to add more spaces a Another consideration will win be to inside roads y c create perimeter to f allow tr traffic to move freely J Crabtree created more spaces by making the road adjacent adjacent adja adja- 1 cent to Redwood a way one-way street allowing for several vertical park parking parking ing spaces The Jordan Campus is expected to ease some of the burd burden burden bur bur- d den n on the Redwood Campus This next semester may help do this as j they open another building As the campus is expanded over time this should continue to be the case The earlier you schedule your classes the better your chance will willbe willbe be in obtaining a parking place Perhaps paving over some of our i landscape may be a solution as y well J JA A suggestion would be to r rif drive around the campus once and if you can t find a parking spot 5 park on a red curb if necessary x knowing if the vehicle is not safely safely safe- safe ly Iy parked you could be asked to to J leave your class and get a ticket if you are lucky and can be found You could return to find your car s j i crashed or to not find your car after it has been towed If you park safely with ith consideration for others the kindness kind- kind g j 1 ness of the ticket givers will prevail prevail prevail pre- pre 3 vail and you will be spared Shane Crabtree said I J 1 realize there is great frustration and constructive constructive constructive con con- We Ve ask for understanding suggestions Our sincere it 3 c accommodate the parking parking parking park- park goal is to ing needs of all our students student L A |