The Advance

Issue date: 10/6/06 Section: Opinion

I am writing to inform students about an issue related to parking. A friend of mine had a bad experience, and I feel the need to warn other students. Everyone is aware of the necessity for additional parking spaces. Many of us park on side streets when we fail to find a parking space. Residents surrounding the school don't necessarily feel for our lack of parking. In case you didn't know, if a resident complains, your vehicle could be ticketed and towed when it remains in the same spot for 24 hours or more. My friend parked in front of a house on Highland. (many students park here) His vehicle was parked there for only two days. The resident complained. We still don't understand the disturbance the vehicle was supposedly causing. It wasn't blocking a driveway, sidewalk, or mailbox. A warning tag was placed on the vehicle mid afternoon the day before his vehicle was towed. I am sure many students leave their vehicles in the same spot for two days or more without checking on them. I know I am guilty of this. My friend works off campus, but not everyday. He discovered his vehicle was gone when he was getting ready to leave for work. Before the police had the vehicle towed, the dispatcher called Kansas Wesleyan and asked if he was a student. The person who answered the phone told the dispatcher that he wasn't a student. He has been attending KWU for six years and is currently a MBA student. If this mistake had not been made, my friend could have been contacted to move his vehicle before it was towed. We were not given a reason why this mistake was made. In order to retrieve his impounded vehicle, my friend had to pay $150 in cash. If my friend didn't retrieve the vehicle the day it was impounded, then the amount would have increased $25 for each additional day. My friend and I were bothered how Kansas Wesleyan handled the situation. We went to Student Life and wrote a letter to the President. Our efforts accomplished no results. The school's solution to my friend's problem was to tell him he violated the law. Thank you for clarifying, Kansas Wesleyan, but we figured that out already. My friend will gladly pay the $25 parking ticket for violating the law, but the $150 we had to pay for the towing, in my opinion, should be reimbursed. It isn't our fault our school lacks sufficient parking. Street parking works okay for off campus students because they will move their vehicles in less than 24 hours, but not having enough parking spaces for students who live in the dorms poses a problem. If the streets are not safe to park on and the parking lots are full, where are students suppose to park?
Jamie Noel

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