The Parking Ramp addition project that was completed in Fall 2015 was an expensive, but great expansion to UWL’s parking options. According to UWL’s website, the project constructed 382 more parking stalls in addition to the 624 existing stalls. This sounded like a great plan and was largely successful. However, while it was a great method for students to get excited about accessible on-campus parking, it only paved the way for more parking lots to disappear.  

While UWL’s parking lots have become a popular topic for debate, so has overcrowding among residence halls. While the Parking Ramp has been an excellent addition to our campus, it still poses a problem. The Ramp only added a few hundred stalls; it wasn’t nearly enough to accompany the hundreds of students still on the waitlist for a parking pass or fighting for parking spots on roadsides.

Equally so, the newly-introduced North Campus Residence Hall will eliminate parking lots as well. The initial plan proposed to RHAC, according to sophomore Emmi Infante, who is a member on the Council said, “the new resident hall would occupy the C-7 lot. After feedback from students and lack of funding options, they realized this plan was not going to be popular.” Instead, the new proposal for the building would now occupy the gravel parking lot behind Whitney Dining Center if administration could purchase rights to a house residing on the lot.

Unfortunately, the North Campus Residence Hall is not the only present building minimizing parking spaces. The new Aguilera building being built by Three Sixty Real Estate will also be buying out 100 spaces of parking on UWL’s campus.  Infante brought light to a deal that was discussed with Chancellor Joe Gow and Three Sixty. Three Sixty Real Estate secured 100 parking spaces in UWL’s parking structure as well. This leaves 100 more commuting or resident students without parking.

Vice President of Student Association Molly Davies said, “Parking is difficult at most universities and it is for a variety of reasons: more first-year students bringing cars, more commuters, increased student population construction, etc.  As long as we are continuing to grow and construct, we are going to see problems with parking.”

Though parking availability is a current problem regarding residents and staff members, it hasn’t been the first due to additions. Several other projects and additions have caused parking lots to vanish. The other culprit regarding vanishing parking lots would be the newest addition, The Student Center. The new Student Center has closed down Wimberly’s parking lot and also limited the access to Cowley’s parking lot as well.

Davies argued, “As the student population rises and the number of parking spaces doesn’t, this create a problem where we have parking congestion. Even off campus, parking is difficult and nearly impossible during alternate side parking.”

History has shown that additional buildings, specifically residence halls, will come before parking lots. While we hope for an additional ramp or numerous parking lots, it doesn’t seem to be the focus of any near-future projects. Understandably so, overcrowding in dorms takes precedence. However, we can only hope administration acts upon the parking lot concern in the near future, specifically for the sake of commuting individuals.