OUR VIEW: Winter parking a pain, but not a surprise

Every year the same complaints of parking enforcement around campus and Logan City reach The Statesman’s ears. To be even more specific, the practice of booting illegally parked vehicles seems to strike a particularly resonant chord with students. During the winter months, these issues are often intensified as more students rely on their vehicles as transportation to campus, and Logan City winter parking regulations set in.

    We dislike booting as much as the next person and could spend our time here arguing about the – academically appropriate – questions of legal ambiguity in terms of seizing property without due process, but instead we would like to address the fundamentals of this problem.

    If you park where you shouldn’t, you will get cited/booted. You’ll get a lot farther by planning on that fact than trying to argue your way out of the consequences – trust us, we’ve tried.

    That means taking into account that most apartment complexes do not allow parking by non-residents, and if you’re going to be out later than 1 a.m., you better get a ride or plan on walking.

    It really is as simple as that. We feel your frustration at being charged the exorbitant $75 to regain control of your motor vehicle and we understand your frustration at the offending party’s seeming refusal to deal with you in a way, shape or form befitting a sympathetic human being. Still, the bottom line is that you live in Logan, they boot here, so get ready.

    Now, parking on campus is a whole other issue. We think that most people would agree that it’s better to preserve the green space on campus than put in another parking lot. Anyone needing evidence of this exchange need look no further than Ogden’s Weber State University and SLC’s University of Utah.

    This preservation of campus beauty – again, we’re in favor – naturally comes with its share of parking issues, in that there is simply not enough room for everyone to park where they want to park, especially in the winter. This problem is further deepened by the parking department’s admitted practice of selling more passes than there are spaces for some lots at USU, meaning it is not uncommon for a student to arrive on campus during the peak hours of the day and not be able to find a stall for which they have rightfully paid.

    We think this is kind of shady, but just like booting in Logan, it happens, so deal with it. Plan on getting to campus a little early during the winter months so that you have time to bus up from the stadium.