Honestly, after reading Matt Thompson’s editorial I angrily turned on my computer, ready to spew out a response.

Luckily, I talked to my roommate first. Since I’ve worked for the DPS Parking Division for more than two years, I am a little defensive. But living with someone who doesn’t work there helped me get an outsider’s perspective on the parking situation on campus. She informed me that, because of the fact that I actually work for the Parking Division, I have an advantage over those who don’t work there. I have the chance to see how the Parking Division works and why it works the way it does.

I am also informed of certain rules we as students must obey, and certain privileges we possess. My roommate stated that instead of continuing the argument between the Parking Division and the students, I should try to explain a few of the most common misunderstood rules.

I decided to touch on the situations Matt brought up in his letter. The first situation he mentioned was parking over the stall marker line. This causes problems with the number of spaces available. As many of you know too well, there is limited space available for parking on campus.

If someone parks over the stall marker line, the next car parks over the other side, a domino effect is then created. In the end, at least one valuable parking space is lost. Many may say they were not over the line that much, but where do we draw the line? Do we arm our enforcement with rules and have them ticket only if the car is three inches over the line?

The only way to really enforce this rule is to ticket any car over the stall marker line, no matter if it is one inch or 10 inches.

The second situation mentioned is getting ticketed in a loading zone for parking too long. As it is stated on the loading zone signs, they are for 30 minutes only. Therefore, if you park in a loading zone for two hours, you have prevented three other people from parking there to load or unload their vehicles.

The $12 tickets issued are intended to be a deterrent, not a $12 parking fee to park in front of your building for the entire day. If only one ticket were to be given, there is a high chance more people would park in the loading zones for longer periods of time, therefore preventing those who want to from parking legally to load or unload their car.

When DPS Parking Division tows a car, there has to be a really good reason. For example, when someone parks illegally in a 24-hour reserve parking space, the sign forewarns of towing. This is not a joke; it will happen as signed.

Now, for towing in Towers, it is occurring now. I will admit there is congestion in this lot, but the Parking Division is doing what it can to alleviate the problem.

We are asking Lot 61 permit holders to park at the stadium right now if there are no spaces available in their lot. From there, people can call either the Help Van or the Safety Escort for a ride back to Towers.

I know I have only touched on a few of the parking concerns that are on campus right now. For those of you who really want to know the answer to other questions, you can read the parking rules that are on reserve in the Parks Library or contact the DPS Parking Division office.

Kendra Nelson

Senior

Dietetics