In response to anticipated additional parking restrictions along city streets adjacent to campus, a new 230-space lot will soon be built in the area west of University Hall and east of main campus.
According to Jim Spice, executive director, Parking and Transportation Services, construction of the surface lot will officially begin around June 1 but faculty and staff may observe pre-construction activity in early March. Spice expects the new lot to be ready for the fall 2014 semester.
A wall that provides a sound barrier from traffic on Regents Circle and Austin Bluffs Parkway may be cut in early March to allow access for construction crews. Those crews will begin demolishing three vacant, dilapidated homes that now occupy the property as well as three other homes in the area. The UCCS plans were approved by the City of Colorado Springs Planning Commission.
“We believe the City of Colorado Springs will implement a permit parking only process in the neighborhood near University Hall in the near future,” Spice said. “This information, along with Lot N being full for the first time ever fall 2013 semester, prompted the decision to move forward with a new lot on the eastern edge of campus.”
The new lot will only be accessible by vehicle from Regent Circle, Spice said. Its features will include low-energy lighting, an emergency phone and a stop for campus shuttle buses.
“The lot will be cleared of snow and have security patrols as well,” Spice said. “I think this is going to be a good alternative to parking on the street.”
Prices for parking in the new lot will be equivalent to Lot N/University Hall rates.
Many faculty and staff are unfamiliar with the area west of University Hall and east of Main Campus. A greenhouse was built in the area two years ago. UCCS purchased the property from a local developer.
Last fall, the City of Colorado Springs implemented permit-only parking restrictions in the Cragmor neighborhood south of campus. That action, when combined with record enrollment, caused on-campus lots to fill and more shuttles from Four Diamonds to be added. Spice hopes to be ready in the event more parking restrictions are enacted. He estimates 150 cars park in the neighborhood near University Hall during peak class times.
In other parking news, because of weather-related delays on the 1,234-space Stanton Road Parking Garage, a new temporary lot 9 will open in March. The gravel lot will have temporary lights and security. The lot is primarily used by housing students and is located on the far west side of campus. Parking officials had hoped to move students from lot 9 into the new garage as construction begins on additional student house. The Stanton Road Parking Garage is now expected to open in mid-summer. Temporary lot 9 will then be used by construction workers.
Leave a Reply