The University of Bridgeport held meetings on Monday, November 13th, Wednesday, November 15th, and Thursday, November 16th to discuss parking plans and changes for the Spring Semester. During these sessions, students had the opportunity to view drawings of a new sports complex being built on campus. Due to the sports complex’s location in the parking lot diagonally across from Bodine Residence Hall, parking for Bodine will be restricted to the parking lot adjacent to the building. However, parking changes will not be restricted to Bodine alone, as the parking area in front of Barnum and Seeley Residence Halls will be moved to the two parking lots adjacent to Wisteria. Any student living in any of the dorms on campus will be issued a green University sticker.Commuter students will need to park in designated parking lots, such as the main parking lot at the Albert Bernhard Center, the Student Center, and the lot in the back of Mandeville Hall. The parking near the Security building will be designated as a “Red Section,” only allowing parking between the hours of 8 A.M. and 5 P.M. on Monday through Friday.
When asked about how these changes will impact commuter students, Greg Breland, the Director of Special Projects for the University said, “We tried to keep the commuter students in mind.a large number of
our population are commuters, so we try to accommodate them.”
The new sports complex plans have started a flood of rumors around campus. When asked about these rumors, Mr. Breland told us, “Putting the athletic field where it’s going is a complex process. There are gas lines, sewer pipes, and other things we’ve been working around.We’ve had some problems with the electrical work on the north end of the field. We’ve had do to a lot of investigation with where we can work.”
One of the rumors that came up in conversation with Mr. Breland was about a tree in the parking lot that the sports complex is being built in. When asked about the validity of the rumor, Mr. Breland said, “I assume the one they’re talking about is the Copper Beech. We’re taking a lot of pains to preserve that tree, but it’s pretty old.
According to the Connecticut Arborist expert we talked to, he doesn’t believe it will last much longer. We’re doing everything we can do to save that tree, though. All the other trees in this block will have to be cut down.” Due to recent events, Squirrels have become a major topic on campus. Last year,a squirrel managed to eat through power lines on campus causing a major blackout. When asked if they will inflict any damage upon the new sports field, Mr. Breland commented, “Squirrels are mammals, so they like things that are biodegradable. These are actually synthetic filaments that are embedded into this surface made of sand or rubber. I’ve never
heard of a squirrel who likes to eat plastic.”
Campus Security has recently taken a new approach to the parking problems here on campus. They have started issuing parking tickets to violators who park in incorrect spaces. I asked Mr. Breland if these tickets will eventually lead to fines of some sort, and his response was, “Yes, the new policy will have a monetary number attached to each violation.
Our regulations are still in draft form, but if you received a ticket, the plan states going to the Bursar and paying off the ticket. One idea that we received was to use that money in a constructive way. We’re thinking of a few ideas, but one is using it to fill in potholes in our parking lots or maybe putting new books in the library.