As the school year continues, Cabrini students face challenges and frustrations with parking issues and permits. For commuters and on-campus residents, many have been met with no parking spaces and parking permit costs.
Where do students park?
Cabrini currently has four different parking lots for students. The parking lots are split between commuters and residents. Parking lot A, located between Founder’s Hall and the Widener Center, is for faculty, staff, and commuter students. Parking lot B, located near the Dixon Center, is for commuters, resident students, faculty, staff, and visitors.
In 2019, Cabrini made some improvements to their parking by creating a parking garage for commuter students, faculty, and staff only. The three-floor garage holds 130 parking spaces. It is located at the school’s King of Prussia entrance, across from Woodcrest Hall.
The residents of the Cabrini Apartment Complex, West, and South residence halls may park at the Residential Drive lot. But they still face issues as there are not enough spaces to hold all residents of those dorms.
Pricey permits
All vehicles parked on Cabrini property must have a parking permit and be registered with the school. A parking permit allows the students to park at their designated lots. Each student must purchase a parking permit before the school year starts, which can be purchased here.
The permits for commuter students and on-campus residents differ in price. For commuter students, the permit without tax costs is $55 for academic-year parking. They are also allowed to purchase a permit for one semester, which costs $35. For on-campus residents, the permit costs without tax are $95-$100 for academic-year parking. If these students want to purchase a permit for one semester it will cost $55.
Fatima Nichols, senior criminal justice major and commuter student, expressed frustration with the parking permit costs, as she struggles to obtain one herself.
“I feel as though commuters should at least have to pay 50% off the parking fee because we aren’t always on campus.”
Jeff Issac, sophomore computer science major and campus resident, pointed out that the amount of money on-campus residents are paying isn’t fair.
“We are paying so much money for parking, and when you pay for something, you want to be able to park there or somewhere close. But in this case, we live there but can’t even park nearby,” Issac said.
Parking jams
Both commuters and residents have designated parking locations, but even with the parking lots available to them, they still run into issues, such as competing for the best spot.
“I always struggle to find parking, especially during specific times like early in the morning for 8 a.m. classes and in the afternoon,” Nichols said “It’s really frustrating, especially when I am running late for class.”
Leah Jones, junior graphic design major and commuter student, said, “Going into the parking lot can be very hard, especially since students that live on campus are using the spots for themselves. It’s unfair since the parking lot is meant for commuter students and they can easily walk to class from their dorms.”
Students who live on campus do not have as many parking lots as commuter students. Those in the Cabrini Apartment Complex, West, and South residence halls said there are problems with parking on Residential Boulevard and the Dixon lot.
“In terms of the South parking, throughout the weekdays, once it hits like 5 p.m. everyone goes in and out, either to go to work or go home sometimes. So, the number of parking spaces available is okay,” Issac said. “But once it hits 7 p.m., everyone is running trying to find parking and moving their cars.”
When Residential Boulevard runs out of parking, on-campus residents are allowed to park at the Dixon parking lot that is located across campus. This results in the residents having to walk far to get back to their dorm, leaving them with danger and frustration.
“There are even some times like at 10 p.m., I would have to park all the way at Dixon or near East residence hall. It would be so bad and frustrating in the morning, and especially at night since I would have to walk all the way around, which is pretty far,” Isaac said.
Precious Balogun, junior nursing major and campus resident, agreed.
“As a nursing student, I am required to go to clinicals, which start at 6:30 a.m., meaning I have to leave campus early in the morning, and when there’s no parking the day before by the apartments, I have to park at Dixon. Making that walk up to Dixon in the morning can be really dangerous because there’s a lot of wild animals like deer, foxes, and bears. There was one time when I had to park at Dixon and as I was walking to where I live, I saw a bear and a fox. I was terrified and had to call public safety to come and pick me up,” Balogun said.
Cabrini’s website offers more information on how to register your vehicle, visitor parking, and other parking regulations. Contact Public Safety for questions about parking on campus.
