Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Just Park It!

I recently read in the Dominion Post (Morgantown’s local newspaper) a headline that read “WVU Dorms Are Full”, dated August 10, 2008. In this article the assistant vice president for enrollment management estimated nearly 28,000 students to enroll in courses for the 2008 fall semester. It was also estimated that 5,000 of those students would be freshman, most of which would be required to live on campus. It also goes on to say that we have the ability, with the temporary leased spaces the university acquired, to house about 5,800 students. Eighty of which were waiting on housing assignments. So when the proper authority realized they have more and more students being accepted to WVU they decided it was time to build more housing. They purchased Summit and Fieldcrest Halls, building Lincoln hall and leasing the Pierpont apartments. They are also building a new honors dorm on Grant Avenue, adding 350 extra spaces for the fall of 2009.

An astounding 51% of students currently enrolled at WVU are from out of state. That leaves 49% to be in-state students but of that 49% I wonder how many are from Morgantown? Now having filled you in on a little school statistics, nowhere in any of the newspaper articles I’ve read, the construction I have witnessed, the traffic I have sat in, did I see or hear of parking spaces being added on campus to accommodate the rising number of students they are worried about housing. There is plenty of over priced “Decal Parking Only” lots downtown on campus. But very few paid parking options for students who must drive to class. I have been downtown 30-40 minutes before a scheduled class and have been late to that class for the sole reason of searching for parking. Doesn’t it only stand to reason that if you are trying to bring more students to this University you should expand the parking options? Anyone out there that commutes to school via their car know of any secret parking?

-- M

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

This is definitely a point that the university needs to consider. As a commuter, I know what it's like to have to hunt for parking where there seems to be none at all. I've come down to leaving my home a full twenty minutes earlier, resulting in me leaving about an hour before my class starts, so that I can park my car in Westover and walk the rest rather than deal with the limited parking.

Anonymous said...

I also understand the hassle of trying to find a parking space. I'm also a commuter and I have to leave my house an an hour and a half before my first class and I live in Star City. I now park at the collisuem and walk to the PRT and this process takes forever. That to me is ridiculous. I think the university needs to figure this problem out...SOON!!!!!