Parking has become a hot topic at Virginia Tech this year. The Lower Stanger Lot closed Monday Sept. 18 to accommodate the construction of a surge space building for academic departments. With the recent closures of the Durham Parking Lot and the Stanger Lot, there are now hundreds of displaced faculty and commuter parking spaces and a lot of discontented drivers.
To make up for the parking losses, Parking Services has opened Smithfield Lot, a commuter lot near the Duck Pond. Over 100 commuter parking spaces in Perry Street Lot 3 were converted to faculty spots as well.
Students who purchased $81 commuter parking passes are frustrated about the lack of parking close to campus.
The effects of the parking situation reach beyond Tech?s campus.
Bill Sterrett, one of the owners of University Mall, has given over 100 warning tickets to students parking at the mall and taking the bus to campus.
?We don?t have as many parking spaces with the amount of construction ? we?re giving a warning ticket to anyone we see getting out of his/her car and getting on the bus,? Sterrett said.
Richard McCoy, manager of Parking Services, has gotten bombarded with parking complaints. McCoy said there are a lot of empty parking spaces in Duck Pond Lot and the new Smithfield Lot every day. He also stresses the several options for alternative transportation. But it seems most commuters would rather pay the price of parking than deal with public transportation; Parking Services has already made $1.4 million this year from parking passes.
To meet Tech?s high parking demand, Parking Services is starting on plans for a parking garage in Perry Street Lot B that will hold 10,000 to 12,000 cars. Construction will not be completed for at least three years and will cost $15-$20 million. Parking Services will pay the debt over several years, but this will inevitably mean higher parking costs for students and faculty.
Jordan McGeary, a senior marketing major, will now take the bus because of the closure of Lower Stanger Lot.
?It?s a hassle to park anywhere else,? he said.
Many students feel that Parking Services is not doing enough to provide convenient parking for commuters. ?We have so many faculty/staff spots that are open, they need to allocate more spots for commuters,? McGeary said.
Shane Hutton, a senior math major at Tech, said he thinks that the parking spots available near Duck Pond are simply too far from campus.
?There needs to be some sort of shuttle service for lots that are far away,? he said.
Haley File, a senior international studies and French double major, takes the bus to class even though she bought a parking pass this year.
?Last year didn?t seem so bad ? it takes longer for me to park than to take the bus,? File said.
Some students view the parking complaints of their peers as frivolous.
Stephen Nimitz, a senior biological systems engineering major at Tech said the parking problem is just a result of too many drivers claiming commuter status.
?You?d be a commuter if you lived outside of Blacksburg,? he said.
Nimitz rides his bike to class and believes that alternative methods of transportation are entirely too underutilized by students.
?Instead of paying $80 and complaining ? if you register your bike, you get 10 free parking passes,? Nimitz said.
