A parking pass costs students $100, and passes are a requirement for students to park in the student parking lot. This year, the issue of students parking in the staff parking lot has grown.
Students have experienced issues obtaining passes due to pricing and space availability. This has resulted in Park’s administration working to create alternative ideas that may resolve issues.
There are alternative spots outside of Park’s parking lot where anyone can park without charge or difficulties. Junior Andrew Thompson said he wouldn’t pay for a parking pass and it’s a waste of one’s money.
“There is no point in having a parking pass if you can park in the back, which is free,” Thompson said. “I park there and I don’t have any problem. Sometimes I even park in the McDonald’s parking lot or behind the track. A parking pass is a waste of money. I’m not paying $50 a semester if I can just park somewhere else for free.”
According to Assistant Principal Alonzo Parks, there are solutions that he is creating to get students to park in their assigned spaces. Parks said when students park in staff parking lots, it creates obstacles for the staff members because it’s complicated to park elsewhere.
“I’m trying to create a solution that makes it fair for staff to park where they are supposed to park, including parking passes that students also have,” Parks said. “This is hard as students don’t park where they are supposed to park because then there is no point in making the passes for staff if the students park in the wrong spots.”
Nordean said that although the numbering system is a good idea, he desires that staff also have numbered parking lots that way both staff and students are fair-minded.
“I like the student parking lot because of the numbering system, that’s a great idea. I wish the staff also had a numbered parking lot — that’s my growth area,” Nordean said. “The district needs to rethink about adding the staff parking lot and (also building) its system, that way it’s fair for both staff and students.“
Parks said he has received student feedback that the cost of the parking pass is too high, and reducing the price might encourage them to reconsider paying for the parking passes.
“I asked some students what we can do to improve or help you guys park where you are supposed to park,” Parks said. “They said the pricing is too much and that we can’t pay $50 a semester so maybe lowering it to $30 a semester, or $20, would help.”
Thompson said there are cost-worthy ideas you can use to persuade students to park in the parking lot.
“The simpler way of fixing this problem is by setting up parking numbers,” Thompson said. “This is less expensive for the staff, as the parking passes are more expensive, which is fair for both students and staff members because it isn’t as expensive.”
According to Nordean, there are limited parking spaces for staff. He said there have been incidents where students who do not have appropriate passes have parked in spaces that are not designated for them.
“The district needs to think about building that staff parking lot,” Nordean said. “I noticed when I came into school there were a lot of people — I found nine people who didn’t have parking passes — so the staff members parked in the back of the parking lot. I noticed these kinds of students are the people who cause others to park outside the school.”
Parks said reinforcing parking rules for students is a priority, and students need to follow these rules. He said there are repercussions for students who do not obey the rules.
“Telling students that they aren’t supposed to park in the staff parking lot is the easiest, and if they have a problem they can tell the staff and get the staff to come up with resolutions,” Parks said.”If they don’t follow the rules, they will be fined, or even get towed, and even put a sign that says ‘if you park in this lot, your car will be towed or you will be fined.’”
