University Plaza’s lease for the 2012-13 academic year will reinstate a parking policy of selling permits for assigned spaces to UP residents — another reversal after a semester-long series of flip-flops in UP’s plans for allocating parking to residents.

At the beginning of this semester, UP residents were required to sign up for a UP parking space, at a cost of $75 for one semester and $150 for the year. Prior to this UP had used a first-come, first-serve system for parking.

After the assigned-space parking policy received negative reviews from residents, Ambling Management Co. — the company that manages the property on behalf of Newman Development Group, the owner of the apartment complexes — emailed a survey to UP residents on Sept. 29 to try to determine how residents felt about the assigned-space policy.

63 percent of residents surveyed responded that they preferred the original first-come, first-serve policy.

Ambling then emailed UP residents in October informing them that first-come, first-serve parking would be reinstated in the spring 2012 semester.

Corky Gatewood, the vice president of marketing and professional development for Ambling, said at the time that the decision to revert the policy in spring 2012 was based on residents’ survey feedback.

The apartment lease for next year, however, promises the return of assigned-space parking in fall 2012, which will be enforced through towing.

“Any vehicle or other property parked, or stored, in violation of this paragraph, or located so as to block or inhibit access to any dumpster or fire lane, will be towed, or otherwise removed, without notice, at its owner’s risk and expense,” the lease states.

Many residents have complained this semester that Ambling has not towed violators of the reserved-space policy.

Gatewood has said that Ambling has no power when it comes to towing cars and that the decision to tow belongs to Newman Development.

“Parking is regulated and enforced by the land owner and it is their decision when and how to enforce the policies that he has enacted,” Gatewood said. “University Plaza does not nor will it have the authority to remove cars at will.”

Newman Development declined to comment after Pipe Dream contacted the company twice regarding their towing policy for UP.

Ali Escalante, a senior majoring in sociology, said she liked the current system because she knows she will always have a spot.

“I don’t have that big of a problem with the current policy because I know that I won’t have to walk from visions at midnight after practice or at 5:30 during practice,” Escalante said. “I like knowing my car is not far.”

Shaina Fischer, a junior double-majoring in psychology and Spanish, said she like the assigned-space policy as well, but she said it requires enforcement.

“I like the policy, but I wish it would be enforced,” Fischer said. “Why did I wait in the pouring rain for two hours to get a parking permit for everyone to just be able to park wherever they want with no consequences?”

Currently, UP gives residents who report a car parked in their assigned spot receive an overnight pass to park in an unmarked spot.

Ariel Schnur, a junior in the Decker School of Nursing, said that neither parking policy is the right solution.

“Although the assigned parking situation definitely didn’t work in practice, I am worried that free-for-all parking is going to leave me searching for spots and unable to find one,” Schnur said. “They have yet to come up with a situation that works for everyone.”