You woke up late, rushed to get out the door, and speed towards school. There was no open parking except for a spot buried within a surrounding neighborhood, which created a 10-minute walk for you, but your best friend pulled up at the same time, stress-free because he got a brand new parking spot.
During construction, the pool parking lot was expanded, adding 53 new parking spots for students, according to Assistant Principal of Operations Tim Matteson.
Matteson also said the West Parking Lot got a facelift.
“[The] entrance was expanded from 24 feet to 40 feet to allow us to add a left turn exit lane,” Matteson said.
53 new spots is a big relief to the campus: A look into the Viking Views Archives shows that students have been complaining about the lack of spots at least since 2005, so the administration finally creating new spots is a big advancement for a school with a history of parking problems.
However, despite this expansion, many complaints were heard from around the campus on how the parking just doesn’t work for the student population.
Senior Claire Calkins said, “It’s never a guarantee that there’s going to be a spot no matter how early you got there.”
Students may be complaining, but presently, according to Matteson, there are 12 students on a waitlist for a permit; and 21 spots about to open up for use — likely by Fall Break.
This means after all the students who applied for a spot get them, there will actually be a surplus of 9 parking spots.
This hasn’t stopped students from complaining.
Senior Angelo Sierras said, “I normally just park in the neighborhood to avoid the crazy crowds.”
The added spots were thought to help how the students handled parking and how exits proceeded in the morning and after school.
“It’s very competitive, but it helps the flow of traffic and kind of smoother exit,” said Senior Anthony Gonzolez.
Some students who just got assigned one of the new spots told the Viking Views how much better it is in their morning.
“Wednesday late starts are [actually] Wednesday late starts now because I don’t have to get to school at 8:15, I can get there at like 8:50,” said Calkins, with strong emphasis on the word “late.”
Those who got the newly assigned spots are quite happy, but others can have some mixed opinions.
“I think it gives more people more parking. But it’s annoying because it minimizes the amount of free spots,” said Senior Jessica Frank.
Students are still stressed about whether there will be a spot in the morning or not.
This leads to the thought of what they could do if they just had that newly assigned spot.
“I would take the extra time to gather myself for the day and listen to music before I have to go to school,” said Sierras.
Students want that extra time in the morning to do something for themselves or to start the day off right.
Sunnyslope Principal Johnathan Parker said, “Even this expansion of parking in the west side was difficult because it came at the loss of field space.”
Many students have been advocating for larger parking areas for years, and once the campus has finally started to expand, some are still left unhappy even with the administration’s accommodations.
The outcome of the new spots has many positives, but there are still many students where parking is affecting their morning. While all senior applicants for spots have been approved, there will always be younger drivers hungry for more convenient parking.