Parking rates to double next year

by COURTNEY BRANCO
Staff writer

Most students probably don’t know that parking passes are rising next school year, which might be a shock to them. Yes, the rumors are true: the price for parking passes will increase from $25 to $50 per academic year, beginning next year.

Jennifer Boucher, the director of campus safety and security at Tiffin University, justified the price increase with comparisons to other institutions of similar size to TU. The parking charged at those schools, she said, ranged from $50 to $350 per year. 

“We felt the increase to $50 was a fair increase,” Boucher said. “And we thought we would be comparable and not exuberating a massive increase at 50.”

Boucher said she has overheard students complain about charging for parking and limited spaces to park on the campus. 

“I’ve counted every parking spot on campus, and there are more than enough parking spots to occupy the number of vehicles registered on campus,” said Boucher. 

For many students, though, not being able to find parking is a daily task.

“What’s frustrating is that people who do live on campus, they don’t walk,” said Kaitlyn Boehler, a commuter at TU. “They choose not to walk even though they live five or 10 minutes away.”

The parking permit fees fund the upkeep of the parking lots and security enhancements, such as cameras and signage, while the passes themselves can help locate students whose car may have been damaged while in the parking lot or around town. 

“Just this semester, we have had three people come in. One person had struck somebody else’s car, and they wanted to let that person know that they hit their vehicle, so having parking passes can help us quickly accesses whose car they have hit,” Boucher said. “One instant that I remember is that a community member called and stated that they had recovered a TU student’s hubcap.”

Boucher hopes that raising the price will also help deter on-campus especially freshman from bringing their cars with them in the following year. 

“Their dorms or resident hall are very close to campus, and everything is in walking distances for them,” said Boucher.  

Even though parking passes are a required for students who want to park on campus, some students feel that doubling the price is unreasonable. 

Alexis Wobser, a senior at TU, said, “I feel that it’s ridiculous to raise the price. I feel that there is not even enough parking space as of now.”  

Amanda Runion, a senior and commuter at TU, said, “During the spring semester, I feel there is enough parking, because a lot of students drop out after their first semester. Preferably having more parking would be ideal for commuters such as myself.”

In short, Boucher hopes that critics to the price hike will look through a wider lens.

“It does help with a lot of safety reasons,” said Boucher. “And I don’t think a lot of people take that into consideration.”

Madison Stevens, a campus resident and former worker in the security office, said, “Parking passes are a good thing that can come in handy for many reasons. And if you don’t want to pay, then you park in the street, whereas the closer parking is for students who do pay for their pass.” 

If you have any questions on parking passes or security issues, in general, the security office is in the Gillmor Student Center next to the game room.