Student Parking infringes on neighbors’ space

Overpopulation begins to inconvenience local residents

Grace Harmon, News Editor
Originally published November 20, 2015

With a district-topping school of 1,712 students, the effects of overcrowding are beginning to show. From packed hallways to congested local restaurants, our growing student body brings many problems.

Local residents suffer from some of the same consequences students do. Among the most problematic is the often dreaded task of parking.

Parking available to students is generally first come, first serve, as the front and back lots are reserved for staff and pool users. This rule, while enforced with the threat of a ticket, is often ignored, and students continue to use the back lot.

“We don’t let [students] park in the lot because once the teachers and users of the pool have parked, there’s just not much [space] left,” violence prevention specialist Soodjai Kutrakun said. “I feel bad because I know many students have to work after school and need to zoom in and out, or end up being very late to class.”

Students are not the only ones suffering from the overpopulated area. “I used to live around the corner and it was a [expletive] to park every day,” local resident Gabe Rodriguez said.

While the neighborhood is mostly residential, local businesses are also affected. “Customers complain they can’t just pop in and back out,” Woody Frank, employee at Honoré Artisan Bakery, said.

Construction along 14th, 13th and Dibble Avenue has also aggravated the issue. “The construction makes everything so much worse,” local resident Katie Fulford said. “What I really don’t like is kids parking all around my house and smoking weed inside of my garage.”

The construction also includes the conversion of some properties on 14th Avenue into complexes. “It’ll get so much worse with more people and less parking,” local resident Steve Gable said.

The school would like to improve the issue, but there are currently no plans. “I’d love to see us try and do angled parking along 65th and 67th and in the lot,” Kutrakan said. “The space would be much better used. We get calls from neighbors constantly complaining [that] their driveways are blocked and I just say, you know, I’m sorry, but we have almost 2,000 students.”