With an increasing number of student drivers, Aragon is facing more parking issues. According to senior Alex Griffis, there are not always enough parking spots for students. She says, “I came maybe 10 minutes before school started. I tried to find a parking space here [in the parking lot], and I couldn’t find any. I went around to the ramp part and parked in the teacher parking lot, and I got into a lot of trouble for it.”
Due to high demand for parking at Aragon, there are actually more parking permits than there are spots on campus. The school has sold 196 permits, but only 176 spots are available to students. Student Services Administrator Dounia Kardosh says the number of permits purchased is usually more than the number of cars driving to school every day. “Some students use two cars, so they bought two permits but only use one space,” Kardosh says.
Kardosh also says, “The first half of our school year, the parking was no problem. It only gets to be a problem, really, April and on. A lot of students who have been waiting right after their break get parking permits.”
According to Roshanne Arathoon, a senior who also parks in the lot, students without permits are not the only illegal parkers in the student parking lot. “The Baywood parents take the parking spots in the panhandle part of the parking lot. They park illegally too, and it prevents you from getting out. It’s really annoying,” she says.
Students raised their concerns with the administration. Kardosh assures students that the Baywood parents do not park in the Aragon parking lot as often before. She says, “I think once in a while, they still [park in the parking lot]. We addressed it with Baywood to let them know.”
The administration also put signs up in the parking lot and, on occasion, positions campus aides at the entrances to monitor entering vehicles.
Although she acknowledges that parking “has been a chronic issue” at Aragon, Kardosh believes that it has actually improved from previous years, especially when there was construction.
She says, “We had one year … there were actually students who parked in the middle, where the islands are, and blocked traffic, like you couldn’t even go around. It was a fire hazard, because if we had a fire, the truck could not come around … It was really bad, so I think whatever we’re dealing with this year is minimal.”
Valmonte thinks that there is enough space, but students seek the convenience of the parking lot over the baseball field parking spots. He says, “There are enough spaces, but [students] want to park in the premium spaces in the parking lot, and not on the entrance road.”
According to Griffis, some students park without obtaining parking permits from Kardosh. Griffis says, “As more people start driving throughout the year, less and less people go and get a permit. They’d rather get in trouble for parking without a parking permit than not driving at all.”
Valmonte finds about two to three illegal parkers per week. “During lunchtime our Service Commissioners will put notices on there [the cars that parked illegally], they write their license plates down, I run them, and find out who they are. They get Saturday school,” he says.
Arathoon, who parks by the baseball field, agrees that there are spots left on the road around the school.
“The baseball field spots normally aren’t full,” she says.
Arathoon thinks that the parking issue can easily be solved by a first-come first-serve basis. Others, like Griffis, believe that if there are not enough spots for the amount of permits, there should be priority involved. Griffis says, “I think there should be a priority for seniors, or juniors at least.”
When asked why, she says, “Just out of seniority. I think we deserve it, because we’ve gone to this school for at least three years. I remember a few years ago that seniors … they just knew where people parked, so they would leave a spot open because they just knew that a certain student always parked there.”
Currently, the senior priority is in effect for a limited time. Kardosh says, “When I open it up, I open the parking sales and permits for a whole month only to seniors. Then, when all seniors have responded and gotten their permits, we will open it up to juniors.”
Junior Savanna Cyr has to get to school at least 10 minutes early in order to find a parking spot. Shu says, “There are usually multiple spots when I get to school. [Seville Way] is pretty much my back-up plan if I don’t find a spot.”
While Cyr and Valmonte agree that the key to solving the parking problem is getting to school early, sophomore Nick Zier believes that a form of “organized” prioritization can solve the problem. He says, “Seniors should have priority [in] the parking lot and the other grades should get the spots farther away from the school.”
This solution would require dividing the parking spots into different zones and assigning students by zone.
Although they recognize that parking can be a problem, Kardosh and Valmonte believe that it can be solved at the moment without adding spaces.
However, Kardosh admits that something will need to be done in the future, She says, “I was thinking that eventually they would put a second level [to the parking lot]. Students are driving at a younger age … In the mornings especially, it’s like a madhouse.”
nice footage!
thanks!