UpDate - Vol. 12, No. 35, Page 1
June 24, 1993
New employee parking option available for fall

     A new low-cost parking option will be available to employees,
effective in September, according to Douglas Tuttle, director of public
safety. A Blue permit area will be designated in the portion of the Bob
Carpenter Center Lot closest to South College Avenue. This area will be
reserved exclusively for Blue permits during weekdays. Employees who wish
to "park & ride" from this location, making use of UD Transit's bus service
to the central campus, may do so for a $65 annual fee. From 4 p.m. until 7
a.m. and on weekends, Blue permits will be valid in most other campus
parking lots.
     Also effective Sept. 1, faculty and staff will pay $160 for a gold
sticker, a $40 increase over last year's $120 fee, according to Gary
Summerville, associate director of public safety,
     The amount was recommended by the 17-member Parking and Transit
Advisory Committee. The volunteer body-which includes administrators,
professionals, hourly and salaried staff members and students-represents
nearly every segment of the University community.
     Rates also were increased for those who park in other type lots.
     Gate-controlled parkers will pay $350, up from $330. Reserved 24-hour
spaces will be $800, up from $600; and spaces reserved from 7 a.m.-5 p.m.,
Mondays through Fridays, will be $600, up from $450.
     Resident students will pay $240, up from $180, for a nine-month
parking pass. They are restricted to specific lots, generally located close
to University-owned housing where they reside.
     Several factors caused this year's increases, Summerville said. "A lot
of the increase reflects the rising costs of maintaining existing parking
areas and adding new parking."
     The grounds division, he said, submitted a $1.1 million estimate for
repairs to existing parking areas that must be completed in the coming
years. In addition, the snow removal bill, because of last winter's heavy
snowfall, was in the neighborhood of $140,000. The previous year, it was
about $20,000, Summerville said.
     The University also is attempting to promote the use of car pools, he
added. Arrangements have been made for employees to be able to split the
shared carpool parking costs through payroll deductions for gold, blue and
gate-controlled lots.
     Car pools with three or more people will receive a 10 percent
discount. Also, all participating members will receive five free passes
that will allow them to bring their other cars onto campus when
circumstances make it necessary for them to have a separate vehicle
available.
     Many of these new arrangements, Summerville explained, are being
phased in and offered to employees in preparation for the University's
compliance with federal Clean Air Act requirements, which will go into
effect in the next few years.
                                        -Ed Okonowicz