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Sage Kiernan-Sherrow<\/strong> | News Editor<\/span><\/p>\n Many changes have been made to Western\u2019s campus, including a new parking system that has left Western\u2019s students with mixed opinions.<\/span><\/p>\n The director of Campus Public Safety, Rebecca Chiles, released an email on Sept. 17 which introduced Western students to a newly-established parking system. Under this new system, students will be required to buy parking permits as they have been in the past, except this time there is more than one permit option. The system is based around parking zones, with\u00a0 \u201cZone 1\u201d \u2014 zones with higher demand \u2014 or \u201cZone 2 \u2014 which are zones with lower demand \u2014 representing the type of permits that students can choose from.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Students wanting to park in higher demand Zone 1 areas will pay $150 dollars for a resident permit, a considerably higher rate than those who prefer lower demand Zone 2 areas, with their permits costing half the price at $60. Non-resident permits for \u201cZone 1\u201d will cost $125, with \u201cZone 2\u201d permits remaining $60. New parking rules also include free parking between the hours of 6 pm-6am, making campus events more accessible for all students.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The email cites affordability and community solidarity as reasons behind the change. Campus Public Safety was put in charge of parking just last year, according to Rebecca Chiles, who asserted that she was charged by President Fuller with coming up with a new strategy that would prioritize \u201caffordability for our students.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n After attending multiple conferences including a \u201cparking and transportation summit at OSU in March\u201d and \u201ctalking to other universities,\u201d Chiles stated that they were forced to accept that Western was \u201cin the dark ages\u201d in terms of how they were executing parking.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Regarding the process of approval for the now newly-implemented system, Chiles said that there is \u201ca parking review committee\u2026 (with) students on that committee,\u201d and that they \u201cpresented the whole entire concept to them with maps and zones and layouts \u2026 and it was unanimously accepted.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Despite approval from the committee, Chiles cited that there have been some \u201cgrowing pains\u201d and acknowledged that there has been some lashback from students, particularly regarding accessibility. To set matters to rest, Chiles admitted that, \u201cmaybe (she had) not done a good enough job talking about disabled parking,\u201d and wanted to clarify that, \u201canyone who has a state-issued government placard \u2026 can buy the cheapest permit and be able to park in any of the zones on campus.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Chiles also expressed some frustration that there is an overall lack of understanding of the system, despite the university\u2019s and Campus Public Safety\u2019s best efforts to keep students informed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWe added a new thing on Portal this year where, to get your permit, you have to click that you have read the rules and regulations,\u201d said Chiles, who also mentioned a brochure attached to the permit with the same information that she says often gets ignored. \u201cWe wish people would educate themselves with the materials that we have provided for them.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The consequences of ignoring such information can be huge, Chiles stressed. \u201cYou can get a citation\u2026 if you get enough citations, your car can get booted.\u201d However, Chiles also encouraged students to know their rights and \u201ctake part in the appeal process\u201d should they \u201cbelieve something (has) happened unfairly.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n In the future, Chiles divulges that she would like to see the use of pay-stations on campus. She believes they would be helpful in cutting down the time spent on getting \u201cpermits for every single visitor\u201d in a large group, something that they have to do every day.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n For the full Q&A, visit wou.edu\/westernhowl<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n To read the full parking rules and regulations, refer to <\/span>https:\/\/wou.edu\/safety\/parking-services\/parking-brochure\/<\/span><\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n