Voice of the Voiceless

With the ownership of any vehicle comes the hassle of finding a place to park it.

At Siena Heights, one of the biggest problems we as students face is scrambling for good parking. No one wants to park behind the fieldhouse or park at the new lot across Elm Street. A student who lives in Campus Village (otherwise known as CV) told me, “It’s not terrible living in Campus Village. We have the capability of pulling around to the door, unloading what we have, taking it up and then coming back down and parking. Yes, it might not be super close, but it isn’t parking at the fieldhouse.”

I asked another student who happens to hate the way parking is. When I presented her with the question of how to fix it, she told me this: “With St. Catherine (Hall) taking away Campus Village parking spaces, why not have it where they have to park across the street in the new lot across Elm Street and leave the CV lot strictly for people who live there?”

Naturally, who doesn’t like parking close? It feels good to get up close and feel like you’re ahead of someone, like you’re winning. In the case of students who live in Ledwidge Hall (otherwise known as the dorms), it is more about placing in second or third and trying desperately not to end up in last. With parking for the dorms located on the west side of the fieldhouse starting after the commuter’s lot, and flowing all the way to the back behind the fieldhouse, it can present a problem.

For students who are carrying things and taking the walk from the car to the dorms, it can be a true hassle. You can take the chance of parking on the street, but if you forget your car is out there, you have a high chance of receiving a parking ticket from the city. Some students have resorted to not registering their vehicles, parking in handicap spaces, or parking in commuter spots. I went to Public Safety, the people who ticket and take care of parking on campus, to see how they felt about student parking.

Ben Koczab, one of the public safety officers had this to say: “I believe it’s a situation where they don’t know how good they have it here. Our parking passes cost $50 per semester or $100 for a year. Michigan State’s parking costs $400 per semester, and even with that they have to park in a further place away from their dorms and walk back. They also still have to commute to class anyway. With the new Elm Street parking lot we fought for, either it was we make that new lot or the extra parking for CV was going to end up parking at the fieldhouse. I’m not sure if it is laziness or what it is, but it’s not that bad around here.”

I asked him about the idea of St. Catherine traffic being forced to park in the new lot (since it is still close for them) and letting the left over CV traffic park in the Elm Street lot. Koczab agreed, saying, “It wouldn’t be too much of a hassle. The only thing that would have to happen is creating a new sticker strictly for them. It makes sense to have it happen.”

A student also brought up an idea to me that I presented to the staff of Public Safety: What if the part of the west fieldhouse parking that is designated for commuters was moved the east side, where to the staff parks and residents can have the whole west side of the lot? Koczab agreed it would be good, but the only issue it could create is the fact that the staff fill up that lot sometimes.

From my conversation with Koczab, it appears Campus Safety are very open to new solutions for parking and making it easier. However, Koczab said either no one brings it up to them, or when they present it to the administration, it might not be in the budget or it is conflicting with plans they already have.

As students, we have to bring what we feel is important to the school’s attention. You can’t fix a problem without talking about it. Silence is not the solution. Ask your resident assistants, go to Public Safety and be the change you want to see on your campus.