Monday, August 13, 2007
Student Senate members will be meeting with the Parking Commission soon to make a presentation about parking near the Student Recreation and Fitness Center.
When Hannah Love, Dodge City senior and student body president, and Ray Wittlinger, Olathe senior and student body vice president, ran for the United Students coalition last spring, one of their platforms was providing 24-hour parking spaces at the recreation center.
Wittlinger said this meeting is a step towards fulfilling that platform.
He said he and other student senators worked over the summer to write drafts of proposals and research student needs regarding parking.
“I think it’s important that when we present this we show that there is a student need,” Wittlinger said.
He said the problem with the parking lot is that it does not allow students without yellow parking permits to drive to the recreation center to work out during the daytime. And because freshmen are not allowed to purchase yellow parking permits, they are excluded entirely from driving to the recreation center during the day.
“We heard a concern from a large amount of students,” Wittlinger said.
Wittlinger said that he and Love will be making a presentation to the Parking Commission in the next few weeks. A date for the meeting has not yet been set, but he expects it to be sometime in late August or in early September.
“I expect we’ll present the Commission with a written proposal and run down reasons for the problem and then answer questions,” Wittlinger said.
He said options for opening up parking for the recreation center include having designated parking spots available for any KU permits, not only yellow ones, or making an arrangement with the center in which students could get a parking pass from the center to put on their car while they work out, and then return it when they are done.
Wittlinger said that the intention is not to take away any available parking in the lots.
Donna Hultine, director of the Parking Department, said the Commission would be open to making the changes suggested by Love and Wittlinger.
“Whatever decision is made, I think the Commission would give a fair ear,” Hultine said. “If there’s a way to solve problems, I think the Commission is willing to help.”
Hultine said that several years ago parking was modified at Watkins Memorial Health Center to allow students without proper permits to park in the parking lot while they were in the building. She said the arrangement caused administrative problems, so the policy was taken away and metered parking was added.
Wittlinger said that he and other Student Senate members met with both the Parking Department and KU Recreation Services to prevent any such problems.
“We don’t want to take away authority from the Parking Department, and we don’t want to create something the rec will have to deal with,” Wittlinger said.
Hultine said she met twice with Love and Wittlinger, before and after they were elected last spring, regarding parking issues on campus. She also said she would wait and see the proposals put forth by Love and Wittlinger.
Wittlinger said he thinks there’s a good chance the Parking Commission will pass the initiative.
“We’ve had good communication with parking and transit and the rec center,” Wittlinger said.
Mary Chappell, director of recreation services, was not in the office last week and could not be reached for comment.
— Edited by Amelia Freidline
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