|
Winter parking takes effect
Students may have missed it, but the blazing yellow sheets slipped under windshield wipers serve as a reminder that Nov. 1 was the start of winter in the eyes of city and campus parking policies.
“Students may not realize that the winter parking policy takes effect at the beginning of November, regardless of whether there is snow on the ground,” said Public Safety Department Sergeant Chad Fischer.
The on-campus winter parking policy was created for the purpose of snow removal and general lot maintenance. As part of this policy, Q-Lot must be vacated between 1-6 p.m. oSaturdays through March 1. Q-Lot vehicles may be relocated after 3 p.m. Fridays to any other overnight lot as long as they are returned to Q-Lot by Sunday at 3 p.m., when standard parking regulations resume.
“Students with a parking permit of any kind are able to park in any lot on campus after 3 p.m. as long as they have a permit,” said PSD Officer Christine Zierke.
Vehicles that are not removed from Q-Lot will most likely receive a citation and be towed from the lot. Citations are normally $25, but to recover the car from the towing company is more expensive.
According to Anne Bell, a dispatcher at Andy’s Towing — one of the towing services utilized by the PSD — the impoundment fee depends on the vehicle towed.
“The average is $62. 93, if you get it the same day (it was towed),” she said. “The next day cost includes an additional $15 dollars for overnight storage.”
Recovering the car is a relatively simple process as long as the university has no hold on the vehicle.
“If there are any unpaid tickets, they have to sort that out before we can release the vehicle,” Bell said. “Then they just have to pay whatever the towing bill is.”
Although Andy’s provides 24-hour assistance, students are only able to retrieve their towed vehicles while the office is open, from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m.
Like SCSU, the St. Cloud Police Department has issued a warning to motorists about the city’s winter parking policy that is enforced from Nov. 1 until April 1.
According to the St. Cloud Ordinance Code, vehicles cannot be parked on the even side of the street on even calendar days between 1-7 a.m. On odd calendar days, vehicles cannot be parked on the odd side of the street between 1-7 a.m. Violators of the ordinance are subject to be towed.
Bell estimated Andy’s tows about 100 SCSU students’ vehicles in the winter, although this is not the only problem students and motorists face. Dead batteries, lockouts, drifts and ditches also present obstacles for students.
Towing services, like Andy’s, specialize in these areas.
“We offer jumpstarts, tows, winch outs — that’s when a car goes into the ditch — unlocks and tire changes,” Bell said.
PSD can also help in some areas.
“We can give students on campus a jump start if their battery dies,” Fischer said. “But we can’t push them out of drifts. They need to call a towing service for that.”
Fischer also recommends purchasing a shovel.
“If I were sending my kid to school here the first thing I would get him is a shovel so he can dig his car out,” he said.
Students ill equipped for a deluge of snow are able to rent shovels from Outdoor Endeavors in the northeast corner of Halenbeck, but availability is limited.
While parking can be a nuisance, Zierke recommends students concentrate on being safe when the car is in motion.
“Students should drive slowly,” she said. “Fifteen miles per hour is more than fast enough to go on campus streets.”
|
|
|
|
Privacy Policy Network Advertising Article Syndication
|
|
