On Thursday, April 15 the Parking and Transportation Office hosted an open house to share information about the impact that upcoming university building projects will have on parking on campus.

“The construction of new university buildings (the student union, education building and Children’s Center) will result in a three-to-five-year temporary reconfiguration of parking on campus,” said Coordinator Kimberly O’Kelly.

“It is estimated that the construction of the student union will result in the loss of 255 parking spaces, while the construction of the Children’s Center will result in a loss of an additional 125 spaces,” O’Kelly said.

Junior Carrie Miller expressed concern about the parking changes.

“I drive from 55 miles away, and I always park on-campus, in the metered lots, because time is always an issue,” Miller said.

As a result of the loss of parking spaces during construction, permit parking within the parking lots will be reconfigured, and temporary lots will be constructed.

• Hibbard: Will remain signed as is but will be faculty and staff permit parking only.

• Phillips: Will have designated guaranteed faculty (GF), standard faculty (F) and carpool spaces

• Nursing: Will be GF permit parking only

• Water Street: Will have designated faculty and student spaces; GF parking spaces will also be added

• Haas Fine Arts: Will have designated faculty and student spaces; GF parking spaces will also be added

The most significant of the parking lot reconfigurations is the relocation of all commuter student parking to the Water Street lot. This decision was made in an effort to reduce commuter traffic through construction zones, allowing commuters to avoid the resulting slow-moving construction vehicles and associated safety concerns.

To accommodate visitor parking for workshops, conferences, fairs and events, a temporary parking lot will be created between Schneider and the existing Zorn parking lot. This lot will have designated visitor parking spaces, but due to the loss of meter spaces outside of Phillips and Davies, a majority of the spaces will be metered.

To help reduce vehicular traffic and potential parking issues on campus, a carpool permit will be available for purchase to faculty and staff. To be eligible for this permit, three or more people are required to commit to carpooling. Designated carpool parking spaces will be located in the Phillips parking lot.

Because the Parking and Transportation Office is its own entity, and therefore funded by user fees, permit prices will be increased to make up for the loss of revenue that will come with the loss of 380 parking spaces. Increased prices will also result from the expenses the Parking and Transportation Office will incur while leasing parking spaces from the city of Eau Claire (economy spaces), reconfiguration of lots and signage and resurfacing of lots after construction is complete.

“The current prices of parking permits have always deterred me from purchasing a permit, and the increase in permit costs for the 2010-2011 year, along with the loss of parking, is reason for me to find residential street parking,” Miller said.

“We (the Parking and Transportation Office) believe that if upper campus parking lots are utilized that the same number of permit holders will be accommodated, even with the loss of parking spaces,” O’Kelly said.

In the case that accommodation is needed, the Parking and Transportation Office is currently working with the city of Eau Claire to determine locations to lease parking spaces. It is anticipated that off-campus economy parking spaces will be on the existing Route 9 transit route. Also, the Recreation Activity parking lot, located near the Bollinger Fields, will provide additional parking for faculty, staff and commuter students.