Limited Space

This year’s parking situation has presented it self as an impending issue; however, there are some solutions to decrease the problem. 

With the construction of the new theater, both students and faculty must squish into the limited parking. Parking on the side of the school for faculty use is closed, forcing the staff to share the few available parking spaces with the students. When all the parking is full, many people are forced to park across the street.

This year about 200 parking permits have been given to students and according to Dean of Students Mr. David Levasseur,

“In a perfect world, [there are] about 205 students spots so there are always five spots open,” he said.

Unfortunately not every student uses a parking permit and faculty parking flows into the student parking area, causing a large challenge to find a parking space.

Beside limited spaces, there is the concern that the spaces are too small for the less experienced students. Compared to other parking spaces, CB spaces tend to be quite small. Some larger cars and vans park over the lines. With cars over the line, spaces are eliminated for other students to use.

Even though there are problems with space and size, there are some simple solutions. Probably the most obvious solution, as pointed out by Ms. Natalia Chiapa (‘00), is to “carpool as much as possible”. Not only does carpooling help the environment, but it reduces the amount of cars present in the parking lot.

Another possible solution suggested by senior Taylor Shields (’14) is for everyone to drive smaller cars because “they are comfortable.” Smaller cars would fit in the already petite spaces and leave more space for other cars to park instead; thus not preventing others from parking due to larger vehicles parking over the line.

An uncommon solution for most students would be to arrive at school early to ensure a parking space. Both Ms. Chiapa and Taylor arrive earlier than the majority of others using the parking lot. In fact Ms. Chiapa has started showing up 25 minutes earlier than last year to avoid parking along the street.

However, the possibility of turning the lot across the street into additional parking is not a solution, according to Mr. Levasseur and Ms. Chiapa. First there is the issue of safety. Some drivers are reckless and do not pay attention to students crossing the busy street. And second, a parking lot would detract from the beauty CB is trying to implement in the community.

There may be less space available this year and small spaces for parking but there are many different solutions to counteract this parking crisis.