Off-Campus Parking Woes
Being a student that lives off campus can be challenging. The parking situation is one of the main struggles. There is a lack of parking spots for students living off campus to park for classes. The below freezing weather makes it dangerous for students to walk from such a distance. A problem that many students cited was getting tickets for parking in these lots.
Ana Kinsley ‘25 said, “I live off campus, and in the extreme temperatures it is necessary for me to drive to class. The school makes it nearly impossible to have accessible parking throughout campus for this issue. The parking permit I was given is on the opposite side of campus, making me walk through the freezing temperatures.” Students that live off campus have to worry each day about whether they will get a spot in the parking lot. If they do not find one, it results in them being late to class.
As other students have voiced frustration with having a parking pass but still receiving tickets, Maddie Milazzo ‘23 said, “Even having paid for a parking pass, I have still gotten hundreds of dollars in fines for parking my car on campus. I live off campus, and when I visit my friends on campus I’m not allowed to park in their lots or park near my classrooms.” Finding a spot to park on campus is nearly impossible without getting fined.
SLU has offered to allow the off campus students to buy a parking sticker for the lots. Not all students were able to get this. Students claimed that this resulted in getting tickets every time they parked in the lot.
Students have even received tickets for parking for a short period of time. Alix Platt ‘23 said, “I received a parking ticket three minutes after I parked my car.” Students are receiving these tickets almost immediately after leaving their vehicle.
Some students have expressed wanting the parking situation to change, yet nothing has happened. Paige Delaney ‘23 said, “I have been given countless amounts of tickets and would rather pay a larger amount for a multi-purpose permit, but when I reached out to safety and security I was immediately shut down and told that if I kept parking in lots that aren’t mine, I would risk not being able to have my car on campus at all.”
As the places that say “no parking allowed” or “faculty and staff” is understood and respected by the students, there needs to be something done. Students should be allowed to park on campus in all different lots if they have a pass. The parking situation needs to be accessible for off-campus students, along with all students that attend St. Lawrence.