Parking changes take effect
By JJ Ossola
IV Leader, Dec 7, 2006
Illinois Valley Community College students, faculty and
staff have a few new rules when it comes to parking their vehicles this
semester.
While the core parking rules laid out in the 2006-07 student
handbook are unchanged, the parking zones have shifted, stickers have been
updated and a tougher stance on violators will be taken.
Director of safety services Ken Sangston said, “We know that
parking has been a No. 1 priority not only for students but for staff and
administrators also. We have been thinking about these changes for years but we
have been more reactive than proactive. These changes are needed so that safety
comes before convenience.”
Faculty and staff have received updated stickers for their
vehicles that need to be displayed to park in lots 1 and 6. Students or visitors
who park in the teacher/staff area will receive one warning in the form of a
bright orange warning sticker. Their vehicle information will be recorded and
logged in a database.
By press time 17 violators had received warnings. A second
violation results in the “blocking in” of the offending vehicle until the tow
truck can get it, Sangston said.
Another instance in which a tow truck could be called to
remove a violator would be if it was “triple parked,” which boxes another car
in. This happens most often in parking lot E where there are no set parking
lines. “It is often a case of a student running late for class. They park in a
hurry and hope that they can get back to their car after class to move it, or
they don’t realize they are doing it. We get a few every semester but it can’t
continue,” Sangston said.
Parking in the dock area for administrators has been shifted
to lots 1 and 6 to allow for trucks to have an unimpeded area to come in and
back up. Smaller vehicles that have to deliver goods have to check in with
safety services and will not be allowed to stay in the dock area any longer than
needed to unload their items.
Sangston said, “Gone are the days when you could pull up and
park for an hour or so. We need the area to be clear for business and also for
emergency vehicles if anything should ever happen in that wing of the building.”
Sangston added, “These changes have been a joint effort
between safety services, IVCC president Larry Huffman and the Student Government
Association, with the full support of the board of trustees. We have had a great
semester so far and we need everyone’s cooperation to implement these few
changes and keep the campus safe.”