New Parking ‘Still Moving Forward’

Sign to event parking at The University of Texas at Tyler. (Source: James Hescock)

University administration is still on track to recover the old parking lot by Ritter Tower, according to Chief Business Officer Dwain Morris who spoke to faculty senate Jan. 18. "We’re continuing to move forward with our parking projects," he said. Administration converted a parking lot by Ritter Tower to a green space in 2019, but announced plans this fall to recover these spaces to meet parking demand.

Some student government senators expressed opposition to the project last fall, citing its impact on the campus aesthetic, but SGA has not taken formal action against the effort.

Provost Amir Mirmiran followed Morris’ presentation with an update on efforts to pursue rearranging class schedules to alleviate what he called "artificial demand" for parking. He said rescheduling may resolve parking demand “so that we don’t have to worry about investing in additional parking lots beyond what we are already committed to." He also said, hopefully, "we don’t have to change the beautiful campus that we have by adding additional parking lots." Mirmiran said it may reduce demand by 15 to 20 percent, down from the 30 percent he first estimated.

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