Graduation alas

Parking committee recommendations see rise in prices

By Lucy Rodriguez
Contributing Writer

After several Parking Advisory Council meetings, the parking agenda for the 2006-2007 academic year is complete. Many parking regulations will remain the same, however parking permit prices will increase.

Permit fees will increase to help finance the estimated $10 million bonded indebtedness that the two current parking garages have caused, said Everett Malcolm, 2005 - 2006 parking advisory council chair and associate vice president of Student Affairs. The increased permit prices will also help fund a new parking garage that will be built in the next few years, he said.

Due to the growing enrollment rate, University of North Florida administrators are planning to add a new parking garage by 2010, said Vincent Smythe, director of auxiliary services. While permit rates are going up, they are lower than they were projected to be two years ago, Smythe said.

A parking garage space costs approximately $8,000 to build, while a surface parking space costs between $1,800 and $2,000, Malcolm said. Parking garages are a better alternative to surface parking spots, because they can be built four or five stories high, he said.