I’ve always felt that Parking Division and I have a love-hate relationship: They love to give me tickets, and I hate them for it. I’ve received more tickets just in the last semester than I have my entire time at Iowa State.

Sure, some of it is sheer laziness on my part — not wanting to put in an extra quarter or just not caring enough to pay at all. But then there are other times when the Pay and Park takes my change and spits it right back out at me, or is just entirely too slow for me to put up with.

Either way, I have to be honest when I say that I’m not a fan of having to dig for change to park at a university I already pay thousands of dollars to as it is. But at the same time, there is a reasoning behind the on-going war I have with Parking Division.

It turns out that those yellow envelopes we hate to see on our cars actually cost less than at the majority of other Big XII schools, parking manager Mark Miller said.

“Iowa State has the second lowest rate for fines and permits of the schools in the Big XII,” Miller said. “And those rates are approved by the Board of Regents and a Transportation Advisory Council made up of several students, faculty and staff.”

While ISU students paid $108 for a parking permit in 2010, other schools like Nebraska and Texas paid $924 and $677, respectively. Though I don’t have a parking permit this year, it’s nice to know students have the option of getting one for a lot less here than they would at other schools.

And even though it stings a little each time I pay for a ticket, I now know that the money they squeeze out of me has some benefit. In 2010 permit sales brought in $1.78 million from faculty, staff and students.

“The money brought in is used for snow removal and repaving lots,” Miller said. “And what’s left after that goes into a capital project fund.”

Snow removal alone costs around $300,000 a year, and the Parking Division also gives almost $250,000 in funding to the CyRide orange route. Capital projects include redoing parking lots like the one by Maple-Willow-Larch and Fredriksen Court. In addition, the Parking Division pays for the safety escort and Help Van that are available to students.

Though I sometimes feel that the Parking Division is just out to get me, I suppose it’s primarily my fault for wanting to cheat the system. Because when I think about it, I wouldn’t want someone else to get away with parking for free if I’m actually paying for it.

Miller said it’s not as though they enjoy giving tickets, but rather it’s a way of creating efficiency and an equal opportunity for students to park.

“We increase fines to make people more compliant,” Miller said. “With thousands of students on campus each day, and many of those wanting to park, we do everything we can to maximize space.”

I’m not saying that I won’t be upset the next time I get a ticket for coming out 10 minutes after my meter expired, but maybe now I can be a little more sympathetic to the importance of Parking Division and the positive things it offers to ISU students.