Parking injustices worsen with winter

Dear Editor,

I am a poor college student. About poor as every other student that goes to this school. The reason for my letter today is to express my extreme frustration with our campus’ parking situation. I am a senior and for the last two years I have WASTED my money on a parking spot. I would walk but I am over a mile from campus. Anyway the parking problems on this campus are a huge issue. As about 75 students know, there was a sudden parking ban several Fridays ago and any cars in the lot were ticketed and towed. I know there was a “warning” but I left Keene and NH with my car in the lot to go on an athletic trip around 10, before there was even curtailed operations. The ban was set after I left. I called the school as soon as I found out, about 7 on Saturday and I luckily was not towed yet. That is not the case for about 75 other students. Campus safety was nice enough to scrape my window in a small area to put a nice $20 ticket on the windshield. I believe that is ticket number 7 for me, and again I have a parking pass.

Unless you arrive at campus before 8:30 finding a spot is a death trap. People are speeding everywhere and I can’t tell you how many close calls I have had with other cars. Someone needs to put their foot down and take control of this situation. It is out of hand and unfair to those of us who paid for a pass. You can’t just make up a rule the day of. Being involved on this campus has cost me more money in parking tickets than the actual cost of my parking pass.

After going into the parking office I was instructed to go to the website and appeal the process. I have never been granted an appeal unless I walked into the parking office.

What I am trying to say is something must be changed. There is obviously a flaw in the parking system. Where is all of this money going? Who is making the final decision to tow cars that soon? I understand snow is hard to move with cars on campus but it is also unpredictable when it will snow. Don’t fault the already poor students for Mother Nature’s actions.

Tim Pipp