Circling the Bolin parking lot 10 minutes before a 9 a.m. class, waiting to swoop into any empty space, or nearly being rear-ended by drivers while backing out are some of the hassles students deal with daily and continue to voice their frustrations. The Wichitan has received many complaints via social media from students claiming the university has more students than parking spots.
The complaints have not gone unnoticed by the university.
Using private money and Texas Higher Education Assistance Funds (HEAF), the Board of Regents has given the go-ahead to new projects that will pave parking lots in the northwest side of campus, replacing the Old Band Hall, the police station, and the Biology House.
If construction goes as planned, the new parking lots will add 186 spaces by the end of spring 2013, at an estimated cost of $890,000, provided through HEAF and private gifts.
According to projected estimates by the Board, 51 spaces will be added by demolishing the Old Band Hall and resurfacing the McCoy School of Engineering parking lot. Taking down the Old Band Hall, which is planned for later this semester, will cost an estimated $60,000 through private funds.
To create a parking lot at the Old Band Hall and resurface the McCoy lot, it will cost $260,000 through private funds. This project is scheduled to begin spring 2013.
One hundred and thirty six spaces will be created through HEAF allocations by tearing down the Police Station and the Biology House. Fifteen thousand dollars of private funds will be spent moving the Police Station to the Alumni House.
The Board of Regents’ master plan states that $100,000 will be needed to tear down the Police Station and Biology House. It will cost an additional $470,000 to pave a parking lot in their place. This will also be funded by HEAF allocation.
Despite the plans of improvement, Student Development and Orientation released their own analysis of Midwestern’s parking situation. The letter, addressed to students, listed the positive aspects of campus parking.
The letter defended change in parking costs, comparing it to larger universities such as Texas Tech University and the University of Texas, who charge students over a hundred dollars a year for parking.
However, the enrollment at these universities is at least six times the size of Midwestern.
Tarleton State University, which averages close to 10,000 students a year, charges only $25 a year for parking.
Adela Martinez said she is not happy with the cost increase.
“You want us [students] to pay that much, but I still have to search for a parking spot,” Martinez said.
Kristen Ashlock said she wouldn’t mind paying higher cost if MSU had a parking garage.
President Jesse Rogers proposed building a parking garage at a Board of Regents meeting last February. The idea was debated by regents who didn’t believe funds could cover the costs.
According to Julie Gaynor, director of public information and marketing, there are approximately 3,073 total parking spaces, of which 2,354 are for students.
Based of the 2012 spring enrollment numbers those parking spaces only cover 41.2 percent of the student body.
In the letter from Student Development and Orientation, the officials outlined the perceived responsibilities of the students when it comes to parking.
“Each semester in college is filled with new responsibilities,” the letter stated. “Time management is one of the skills you should develop. Being in class ‘on time’ means that you cannot wait until the last minute to go to class.”
The letter advises students to plan ahead and to give themselves around 20 minutes to find a parking spot.
“It takes longer for the people that circle the one parking lot and find one there than it is to go to than it is for those who go to another parking lot and walk,” Katie Bruner said. “If students can accept the fact that they aren’t going to be close to their building, parking is not that bad.”
Bruner, who has previously lived on campus, said there is less parking for housing students.
“There’s enough parking spots for commuters just not right where you need to go,” she said. “I had trouble when I was on campus and trouble now that I am off campus.”
At the May Board of Regents meeting, Keith Lamb, vice president of Student Affairs and Enrollment Management, said current parking surveys indicate that MSU parking lots are only 88 percent full, even at times of heaviest traffic flow.
But since May, the university has eliminated around 30 parking spaces to put in “green space” between Clark Student Center and Killingsworth Resident Hall.
“If [the parking survey] is talking parking as a whole, then yes, I could believe their findings,” Bruner said. “If they mean an individual parking lot at a peak time, then no, I don’t believe that survey.”
The survey takes into account the parking areas with less student traffic, such as the Wellness Center and the parking lot next to Christ Academy.
“Midwestern’s administration recognizes the parking problems on campus and is working on some rather large projects to expand parking capacity,” the letter stated.
“This process might be a little slow, but it’s better than not being able to have a car. Other universities across the nation do not allow freshmen to have cars on campus.”
Martinez, Ashlock and Bruner all said that despite the difficulty it poses, they have always found a parking spot.