As students return to campus, the Union Parking Lot and Day Parking Lot, east of the Half Acre Gym, are closed and the future of the Ivinson Parking Garage is unclear.
While students were off for Winter Break, the Union Day Lot and a portion of the Union Parking Lot were closed for the eventual construction of a green space.
Currently there are still 16 metered parking spaces and 81 brown permit spaces available in the Union Parking Lot, but in the coming weeks and months this is subject to change.
“Those numbers will shift in the coming days as the staging area for the trailers get situated and fences get moved,” Paul W. Kunkel, Director of the University of Wyoming’s Transportation Services, told the Branding Iron.
A number of spaces will remain available within the Union Parking Lot until the Ivinson Parking Garage is complete and potentially even longer.
“The Union Lot will remain in this configuration until at least the time the Ivinson Parking Garage opens,” said Kunkel, “With that being said, there is a good possibility that the Union Lot will remain in this configuration through the Spring semester.”
Adding to the confusion, the University of Wyoming has not set an official date for the opening of the Ivinson Parking Garage.
“The Ivinson Parking Garage will open sometime during the spring semester after construction is completed,” Kunkel said.
“There is no estimated date of completion at this point.”
Beyond not providing an estimated opening date for the Ivinson Parking Garage, the university has not announced how much a Gold (Garage) Permit will cost during the 2023-2024 academic year.
Originally a Gold Permit was announced to cost $390 for the 2022-2023 academic year, but as the Ivinson Parking Garage has not opened, the price will be “prorated dependent on when the parking garage opens” according to Kunkel.
It was previously announced the University of Wyoming planned to extend the Bus Hours from ending at 6:30 p.m. to ending at 10:30 p.m., but those plans have not been implemented.
The schedule will not be adjusted until at least after the Ivinson Parking Garage is completed according to Kunkel.
Kunkel recommended students who previously used the Day Lot use the bus transit systems and other parking near campus.
I appreciate the transit system in place as an option for people who are are not tasked with time sensitive errands during the day, but for many students and staff, it is simply not feasible. It does not work when leaving for an hour lunch break or dropping/picking kids up from care (set schedule), or running back and forth between work and school. To park and ride the transit buses, on a good day, includes a 15-30 minute commute one-way. Students and staff may be more likely to appreciate and utilize the transportation/buses if administration modeled utilizing them. It is hypocrisy that the NEW parking garage is closest to the largest/main administration building, NOT central to campus and the majority of students/staff/campus. The parking structure should have been the placed at the Union (central). UW pushes the parking burden into the community (and city), where many students and staff have to park to be able to have the flexibility they need to accommodate their responsibilities.