While the sights of University construction are fading in light of the Fall semester, the tension and effects of the topic still remain on campus.
During the 2022-2023 school year, students were made aware of campus plans as parking spaces suddenly became construction sites; routine class routes were altered, and quiet study areas turned into work zones.
As of recently, the 15th Street closure just outside of the Union parking lot was causing students and residents to detour away from campus, farther from most classes.
The construction was cleared on August 26th, just in time for students to get into the full swing of the semester.
However, incoming freshmen are still greeted by construction overtaking Union parking and vehicles cluttering pathways to the Classroom building around Prexy’s Pasture.
A Student Parking Satisfaction poll was conducted by the Branding Iron on the week of August 28th; asking students if they relied on parking to access campus, how satisfied they were with parking availability, and if parking availability had ever directly affected their attendance to classes on campus.
Of 409 total responses to all questions on the survey, 73.1% of students claimed that they rely on parking spaces to access campus. Additionally, 64.3% of students labelled their parking satisfaction a 1 out of 5, and 22.5% adhered to a 2 out of 5.
Furthermore, students that answered the poll, 75.6% indicated that parking availability has directly affected their attendance to on campus classes.
The ongoing discontent among students is continuing to be neglected by students and faculty that oversee such projects.
Last school year, Branding Iron attempted to get a response from Associated Students of the University of Wyoming (ASUW) on the subject.
An ASUW representative responded neglecting that there was a problem with parking availability.
Still, in an attempt to get in contact with project and utility managers on the urgent matter, Branding Iron has struggled to get responses.
Going forward, students can expect to see construction across campus.Though, the university is attempting to minimize impacts during times of heavy traffic.
Before foundation for new facilities can be installed and construction can continue, utilities that are necessary to support an increased population on campus must be installed.
As William Winkler, the city Project Manager stated, they’ve had a hard time keeping utility projects on schedule “due to supply chain issues.”
Pedestrians will be happy to hear that only one more month of utility work is in the books around Prexy’s Pasture, which will ease travel during the late Fall and Winter months.
