Enrollment
rise impacts parking
By
Michael Bower
On-line Forty-Niner
Cal
State Long Beach's parking lots are not
exactly scenic views, and even with just
a minor increase in enrollment drivers could
still plan on admiring The Pyramid when
they circle the lot looking for a place
to park.
Enrollment
at CSULB is expected to increase from 34,566
last year to no more than 35,000 this year,
said Van Novack, Director of Institutional
Research.
"We
are not forecasting [enrollment] to proceed
thirty-five thousand," Novack said.
"We are actually predicting 34,600
to 34,700, which would be relatively flat
because we have had tremendous growth every
fall recently."
People
are still registering for classes and on
waiting lists so the number of enrolled
students can not be exact, Novack said.
Even
with the slight increase in students, finding
a parking spot can be difficult; and the
two new parking structures, one of which
is expected to be complete in the spring
of 2005, can not come soon enough.
The
structures to be added in lot 11 will add
an additional 1,530 spaces to the it's already
existing 2,270 spaces. Actual construction
for the structures is expected to begin
in the upcoming spring semester and has
had no complications, said Armando Contreras,
Executive Assistant to President Robert
Maxson.
"Everything
is on track," Contreras said about
environmental reports and designs for the
structures. "All that is underway,"
he added.
While
construction is taking place for the new
parking structure some 500 to 600 parking
spots will be lost, but until then the parking
lot is open for student parking.
"The
normal parking lot will be open for the
fall semester," Contreras said. "In
front of The Pyramid they are putting in
extra lighting...that spot will be closed."
Additional
parking will be made available at off-campus
sites. Veteran's Stadium and Marina Pacifica
will have free parking and shuttles that
will provide students a ride to campus,
Contreras added.
Frank
Rodriguez, a criminal justice graduate student,
is a veteran of the parking fiasco and has
a plan in mind to make sure he gets to class
on time.
"I
know I have to leave at least a half-hour
early because in the first week of school
it is impossible to find parking,"
he said. "People are showing up to
get their books and add classes so more
people are there than usual."
Clint
Trixner, a senior majoring in Psychology,
is not worried about the increase in enrollment.
"Parking
was a problem before anyway so four hundred
more people won't make a difference. It
is always going to be crowded at the beginning
of the semester and finding a spot is going
to be a tough task," he said.
Contreras
had this piece of advice to offer for the
students driving to school: "Get there
early, it's a lot less frustrating...Everyone
wants to be able to find a spot close to
their class. You have to plan to park a
little further so you can walk and get to
class on time."
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