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Crowded parking lot at the Trinity Men's
Baseball home opener last weekend
Photo by Abby Tisdale
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Piece Pontikes, a Trinity baseball player, arrived on campus two hours before his team’s home game on Sunday, hoping to get a parking spot closer to the baseball field. "I still had to park all the way by the football field," he said.
Pontikes was not alone. Coming to the game between the Tigers and Babson University, parents and students had a hard time parking cars. Although the Prassel Garage was opened for additional student and visitor parking, due to the current construction outside the Bell Center, parking was tight.
“We shockingly got a spot right up front, which never happens,” junior English major Julia Camp, 21, said.
The university has been preparing for the situation since before the construction began. Seth Asbury, Associate Director of Athletics for Facilities and Event Management, said they have opened up spots in the Prassel Garage and are utilizing the spots around the football field for extra parking on game days.
“We have been able to park visiting team busses between the Bell Center and the football stadium, so we’ve been rather fortunate,” Asbury said.
Beyond games days, parking has also become an issue as the university undergoes renovations across campus. Although Trinity has attempted to prepare for the tight spaces throughout the next year of construction, the limited spacing is becoming more evident.
“When I lived on campus, it seemed like I had to park in Austin and take a bus here,” said Jeremy Wolfe, 23, a Trinity baseball alumnus.
Pontikes was not alone. Coming to the game between the Tigers and Babson University, parents and students had a hard time parking cars. Although the Prassel Garage was opened for additional student and visitor parking, due to the current construction outside the Bell Center, parking was tight.
“We shockingly got a spot right up front, which never happens,” junior English major Julia Camp, 21, said.
The university has been preparing for the situation since before the construction began. Seth Asbury, Associate Director of Athletics for Facilities and Event Management, said they have opened up spots in the Prassel Garage and are utilizing the spots around the football field for extra parking on game days.
“We have been able to park visiting team busses between the Bell Center and the football stadium, so we’ve been rather fortunate,” Asbury said.
Beyond games days, parking has also become an issue as the university undergoes renovations across campus. Although Trinity has attempted to prepare for the tight spaces throughout the next year of construction, the limited spacing is becoming more evident.
“When I lived on campus, it seemed like I had to park in Austin and take a bus here,” said Jeremy Wolfe, 23, a Trinity baseball alumnus.
So far, the Trinity University Police Department (TUPD) has continued to follow normal procedures regarding parking. “We haven’t asked TUPD to do anything differently,” Asbury said.
Students, meanwhile, have taken to parking anywhere they can find, even if the spots were marked “Reserved” or “Visitor.”
“In Lot O, sometimes students park in our reserved faculty/staff parking spots, but they did prior to construction too,” Asbury said, with a smile on his face. “We have to purchase passes too.”
In order to avoid the pains of finding a parking spot around the Bell Center, some students are taking different measures to reach their destinations. Camp, for example, has found that “scootering” around on her Razor has given her ample places to park.
“I have taken to walking everywhere,” said Alex Ortiz, 20, a business analytics and technology major. “It really throws off my schedule and I have to leave way earlier.”
The Bell Center renovations are projected to be completed, with parking back to normal, in spring of 2018.
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