So much is changing in and around our school, and it’s hard to keep up. One of the latest changes to South Oldham High School (SOHS) is the closing of the junior parking lot. Over 100 students previously parked in this area and are now displaced to other parking lots for the rest of the 25-26 school year. While the impact was felt immediately, many students still don’t understand the reason behind the change.
Logistics
In an interview with Mr. Vanklompenberg (Mr. VK), the Assistant Principal who manages all things parking, he disclosed that there were about 105 students previously parking in the junior lot, the majority of whom are seniors, who are now spread across the SOHS senior lot, South Oldham Middle School (SOMS), Camden Elementary, and Kenwood Elementary. About 60 spots were added with a gravel lot behind the SOHS senior lot, three rows of spots at South Oldham Middle School (SOMS), about 12 spots at Camden Station Elementary, and an extra 15 spots at Kenwood Station Elementary. Mr. VK also explained that due to students graduating early, moving to Liberty Academy, or losing their spot due to outstanding fees, behavioral issues, etc. (rules that were already in place before the construction), there were a couple of extra parking spots that SOHS was able to sell to students on the waitlist; there was no one who completely lost their spot due to the construction.
Mr. VK also stressed that “you have to be really flexible…and [staff, students, and the other schools on campus] have been really flexible so far.” An example of this flexibility is the SOMS teachers being willing to shift where they normally park in order to allow for SOHS students to use part of the facilities.
SOMS Assistant Principal and Athletic Director Joe Gamsky said that “approximately 5–6 staff members were directly affected…[and] an additional 5–6 staff members were indirectly affected.” Beyond the changes the SOMS staff members faced, the whole SOMS community saw “an increase in traffic congestion” says Gamsky. Although these changes have not been easy for anyone, Gamsky says that SOMS “want[s] to do our part to help ease the burden the high school administrative team is undoubtedly experiencing.”
Reasoning
Even though many students can see the effects of the construction, they don’t know the end goal or why students are being moved now. Senior Zoe Gatewood even said, “I don’t understand why they didn’t do the construction in the summer, in the areas that they knew would be most affected.” Mr. VK provided the reasoning behind these decisions by saying that the end goal is to expand the junior lot so that “at the end of the entire reconstruction, there should be enough spots for all seniors and juniors to park on campus.”
Mr. VK also disclosed that part of the reason the parking lot construction couldn’t wait until the summer is because it will take longer than two and a half months to complete. Instead of using regular pavement like the senior lot, the junior lot will be rebuilt with paving stones similar to the side teacher lot, causing a longer construction time.
The other part of the reason that the construction is happening now is due to the construction schedule that was originally put in place. Wehr, the construction company responsible for the renovations at SOHS, was able to move faster in some areas of construction than they originally planned, which expedited the timeline slightly, and this is not something that the school could control. The combination of different materials and the construction schedule moving faster precipitated the need for the project to take place over Winter Break.
Student’s Opinions
In response to the parking upheaval, many students have similar opinions. The main sentiment expressed is that the change in parking is causing more traffic, thus taking longer to get to and from school. This can be expected, though, and is unfortunately an inevitable side effect of construction and losing a parking lot.
Additionally, many students are unhappy with the initial communication regarding the parking changes because students weren’t notified until the day before Winter Break, and the changes would take effect immediately when school resumed in January. These students would have felt better about the situation if they were given more advanced warning; however, Mr. VK clarified that the construction timeline moved faster than anticipated, and there simply was not time to better prepare everyone, despite the desire to do so.
Furthermore, many students have also expressed similar feelings as Zoe Gatewood, a senior who parks in the gravel lot, when she says, “I did pay $25 for a spot, but now I’m not guaranteed one.” Lucia Wilson, a junior who parks at Camden, also finds the parking situation “stressful” because she doesn’t have a guaranteed spot. Although many students feel this way because they are no longer assigned a specific spot, Mr. VK assured that there are enough spots for everyone.
Potential Solution
Although this situation is not ideal for anyone and there are no perfect solutions, junior Ruby Swift, who originally was moved to the Camden parking lot, said she “talked to the assistant principal, and said, can I get my spot moved to Kenwood? Because that helped [her] a lot.” She explained that while at Camden, she was facing unnecessary traffic because of where she lived, and that switching to Kenwood would make it so “it takes a lot less time to get out.” Giving students this choice could help reduce the amount of time it takes students to get home and allow them to have a say in the changes that are happening.
Conclusion
Ultimately, the parking situation is the newest development in the construction saga, and while this is the current situation, plenty will be changing over the next couple of years. Now that students and admin have settled into the new parking route, admin are trying to be as responsive to the challenges students are facing, given the current restraints. This isn’t the first time, nor will it be the last, that everyone at SOHS will have to be flexible as we eagerly anticipate the improvements that the renovations will make.
