Parking Lot T, the new overnight parking lot located behind Johnson Hall in Dickinson Community, opened early last week, providing 85 new spots for student drivers.
Lot T is designated an overnight lot, said Dan Chambers, deputy chief of Binghamton’s New York State University Police.
The other part of Lot T, which runs parallel to the road, will remain as a commuter snow lot, which can only be parked in during the day.
“The lot is a step forward,” Chambers said. “We needed the spaces by East Campus. Hopefully this lot will remedy the parking situation a little bit. It should help over the weekends so they don’t have to park in Lot S.”
According to Chambers, the lot opened on schedule, with only minor delays when it came to getting accepted by the University, which can only occur after all construction is complete.
“We were waiting for total acceptance of the lot,” Chambers said. “Something as small as the pavement markings needed to be completed. We had to make sure that the markings were painted in the outer lot because you wouldn’t want to be in the new lot and get blocked in when people parked in the old lot.”
The staff at Parking Services took the heavy pedestrian traffic of the area into consideration when creating the lot, Chambers said.
“There are some marks right now to give you a wider view when pulling out. It’s easier to drive out of the new lot than to back out of the old Lot T into traffic,” he said.
The last detail that had to be completed before the lot opened was to plow the snow, Karen Fennie, director of Physical Facilities, said.
“We had to make sure it was plowed and cleared for it to open,” she said. “The snow had accumulated on the lot.”
The lot will remain an overnight lot until the construction that is taking place in East Campus is complete, Chambers said.
“Right now it is designated as overnight,” he said. “In the general plans for East Campus housing, there will be more parking once certain buildings are taken down. We will then look at how best to utilize the space. We are going to keep this an overnight lot until this phase of construction is complete.”
Students living in Dickinson are pleased by the opening of the new lot.
Sophomore Aaron Friedlander of Johnson Hall said the lot makes living in Dickinson bearable for student drivers.
“Due to the limited availability of parking on campus, the new lot has afforded students more flexibility when it comes to parking overnight,” Gabby D’Annunzio, a freshman living in Johnson Hall, said.
Chambers agreed the lot should help the parking problem on campus and believes it will be a good location for incoming freshman to unload their cars when moving into the dorms.