Quit complaining about parking; learn time management, plan ahead better

April 18, 2017

Audrey Jensen

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     This school year, #ImproveUCCS, a campaign that surveyed students and asked their opinion of what could be better at UCCS, resulted in a countless number of parking complaints among students who participated.

     I’m not going to lie, I’ve used parking as an excuse to be late to class or a meeting several times during my college career at UCCS. I leave 15 minutes before something starts and expect to arrive on campus with no issues.

     But if you know how challenging it’s going to be to find a convenient parking spot well before you leave for class, then it’s no one’s fault but your own that you have poor time management skills.

     If you have a parking pass for almost any lot on campus, more than plenty of parking exists throughout the semester for you to get to class at a decent time.

     On main campus, UCCS has a total of nine permit-required parking lots (including the Family Development Center), two parking garages and one free lot. And each parking garage has four to five levels to park on.

     According to the floor plans on the UCCS Facility Services website, Gateway Hall Garage (next to Columbine Hall) has over 800 parking spots and Alpine Garage and Field has over 1,000 parking spots.

     Lot 224 in front of the library holds around 350 spots. Together these lots make up for over 2,000 spots on campus, which doesn’t include the eight other permit-required or visitor lots.

     While I can’t speak for those who have to depend on free parking in Lot 576 by the Ent Center for the Arts, I can say that with a pass, I have found a parking spot within five minutes each day I drive to campus.

     Purchasing a parking permit this school year was definitely worth it.

      I arrive on campus everyday of the week from 9-11 a.m. and have never had to drive around for a long period of time.

     No, I don’t always get to park in the lots in front of the Kraemer Family Library or Centennial Hall.

     But an extra five-minute walk to my commute is not the end of the world, and I end up saving more time by driving directly to the basement of the Gateway Hall parking garage by Columbine than I do hunting down students walking to their car after class.

     When I get to campus, I almost always see extra spots in the parking garage basement, the fifth floor of the same garage or next to the Academic Office Building.

     Yes, we are students, life is crazy and it’s convenient to use every minute of our day not worrying about finding a parking spot to be on campus 10 minutes before class starts.

     But after we graduate, when we go to interview for jobs or have to get to a meeting on time, it’s not going to be excusable to tell our boss, “Sorry I’m late. You know how bad parking can be.”

     And really, it could be worse, especially if the largest complaint students have at UCCS is parking.

     So find something better to complain about and learn how to plan out your day; it will benefit you in the long-run.