In the last two days, you have probably voted for Student Body President, or at least heard someone on campus talking about the election. You might have seen chalk on the sidewalk or found one of the candidates chatting with a group of students in the library or Student Center.
There is, however, an even better chance you heard someone on this campus complain about the parking situation over the same time span.
Parking was a big issue last week at the Student Body President debate, as many of the candidates discussed their concerns about the current state of affairs. One candidate used the word, “unsustainable” when talking about this issue. Another told a story about a professor being late because of the parking mess here at Eastern Michigan University.
The student body wants something done, and the candidates have been listening. There is just one problem; we don’t have a parking problem.
Next month, I will conclude my third year at Eastern, and I have never had trouble finding a parking space. In three years, I have never seen every spot on campus filled.
One of the presidential tickets has a campaign picture next to the electronic sign on Oakwood saying, “We get it,” as the sign reads the three lots listed on that sign are full in big, red letters.
What you don’t see in that picture is the sign right beside the electronic one saying additional parking is available in Green Lots 1 and 2 (or North Lot, for those of you who have been here more than two years).
The Green Lots are vast concrete vistas. Countless spaces are available. There isn’t an electronic sign, because it’s never full.
So, you might ask, why does everyone believe the myth of the parking problem? Because people don’t want to walk from the Green Lots. The extra five minutes, and I assure you that’s all it will take, are considered an eternity by the commuters among us.
With the wind blowing in your face, from the worst spot in Green Lot 2, it will only take the average person 15 to 20 minutes to get to Pease Auditorium (the furthest building from GL2). And no one ever has to park in the worst space in Green Lot 2.
The problem on campus isn’t parking, it’s a portion of the population expecting to park right outside their classroom building. Commuter after commuter brags about how far they drive to come here but won’t tack on another couple minutes to walk to class – so they drive around the parking structure looking for a spot instead of finding one in Green Lot 1 immediately.
The presidential candidates spoke of getting a bus to run from the convocation center to main campus so Eastern students could utilize those lots, but we don’t even fill the ones we have on main campus. Why would we need to do that?
Another wished we had the money to build another parking structure. Where would we put it that is closer than Green Lots 1 and 2?
Admittedly, some candidates talked about bus passes for Eastern students to save money and help the environment. Those reasons are sound. We just don’t need those solutions because of a “parking problem.”
We’ve been talking about the “parking problem” forever at Eastern, but there is a reason the administration hasn’t done anything about it. It’s not that they don’t care; it’s that the problem doesn’t really exist.
It’s fiction. It’s made up. It’s the product of some people’s laziness and other people’s sense of entitlement. Take a few extra minutes, park a little farther away and walk to class. You’ll save yourself the trouble of looking for a spot. You’ll save time. You’ll get some exercise.
In a time when this university faces some serious challenges, we should not be fighting about something that isn’t a serious problem. We shouldn’t spend time or money on a problem that doesn’t exist.
If you haven’t voted yet, don’t select a candidate because of their stance on parking, because it doesn’t matter. Nothing needs to be done.
