ParkUToledo is “not the villains people want to make us out to be,” according to the non-profit’s Executive Director, Sherri Kaspar. Kaspar was answering questions about parking at UToledo during a Parking Q&A on October 10. ParkUToledo handles all aspects of parking—permitting, ticketing, maintenance, etc.—at the University of Toledo. The agreement between UT and ParkUToledo requires meetings be held twice a year so the campus community can give feedback on parking on campus.
At October’s meeting, a number of people complained about ParkUToledo’s ticketing policy. Some students were upset there is no leniency for first time offenders of the parking regulations, claiming a zero-tolerance stance gives parking on campus a negative stigma and makes people afraid to visit.
“If you show up to campus and you park the way you’re supposed to park, there shouldn’t be a problem,” Kaspar said. If someone believes they have been improperly ticketed, they can appeal the ticket by contacting ParkUToledo. All tickets must be appealed within 10 days of being issued. If someone gets a ticket and cannot pay it, they can ask to set up a payment plan with ParkUToledo to pay the ticket off over time and avoid racking up extra fees.
The prices of student parking passes went up $4 this year, making permits $137 per semester, and the price of faculty parking passes went up by $59, making them $100 per semester. This is because ParkUToledo wants to close the gap between what students and faculty must pay to park on campus.
Participants were required to submit their questions digitally, through a live online forum. In one such question, someone claimed parking prices at nearby schools like BGSU are muchcheaper and students should have had a say in how much parking would cost. According to Kaspar, the price of parking passes is set based on the price of parking at “peer schools” around the area including “MAC schools and Ohio State.”
Another common theme at the Town Hall was that students and faculty have a hard time finding parking. Kaspar said the most desirable parking lots, such as areas 10 and 13 are “full a majority of the time.” She suggested people go directly to lots 18, 20, or 25, rather than circling the more desirable lots, because those three are consistently empty.
There are no plans to construct new parking facilities in the immediate future, Kaspar said. “Until we start seeing the campus fill up, which we are not seeing the South end at all filling up, no additional parking is expected to be put in, surface lot or parking garage.”
According to ParkUToledo, permits are always required to park on campus. Their enforcement hours are from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Mondays to Fridays and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends. For more information on parking at UT, visit parkutoledo.com.
