The University of St. Thomas greets its guests with a sea of permit-only lots, and the city streets that surround the campus are littered with no parking signs. Although a couple permit only lots are available to guests on weekends, a minuscule amount of parking is available on weekdays. Finding a legal visitor’s spot at St. Thomas is like find a parking space at Mall of America on Black Friday. The visitor parking experience at St. Thomas involves an undue amount of stress and anxiety. Respect for the law is even challenged as visitors weigh the consequences of parking in an impermissible spot.

St. Thomas does not provide adequate parking for visitors. The small slice of street parking available is taken up by the freshmen who cannot afford the $1,000 for a parking permit. Or the upperclassmen, who are treated with slightly more compassion, who must hand over $460 a year in exchange for on-campus parking.

The parking that remains is left for visitors. They circle the campus searching for that elusive spot but are overwhelmed by the no parking and permit-only signs. As their patience grows thin and time grows short, they may make the decision to park their vehicle in violation of the no parking or permit-only designations. My roommate’s Aunt Ronna drove two hours to visit. She called my roommate several times for guidance on parking options. After circling and searching, she finally parked in a permit-only lot. She then taped a note to her car that read, “Will be back in 30 minutes, dropping stuff off and saying hi to my niece”. Aunt Ronna was lucky – her note spared her a ticket. But not everyone is this fortunate; many people find a ticket waiting on their windshield.

Even prospective students who wish to walk around campus before signing up for an official tour are taking their chances with parking. Although there is available parking in Flynn and Morrison, few are aware of these hidden lots, especially guests coming to campus for their first time.

Since the city of St. Paul has cracked down on the street parking, and the campus lots are reserved, it is in St. Thomas’ best interest to step up and improve visitor parking. Installing metered parking or a ticket booth in the Ireland/JPII lot on North Campus and the Grace/Cretin lot on South Campus would increase options. Also, improved signage to make the parking lots more visible to guests would be helpful.

St. Thomas could make a difference in the everyday lives of students, parents and friends by increasing the available parking. After all, isn’t St. Thomas’ new motto “all for the common good”? This is a “good” solution to a “common” problem.