$350.
$350 is the amount it cost me to park somewhere else for one night where I felt safe. Longwood University has a very strict parking policy. Freshman parking in Lancer Park, resident parking in the Wynne Lot, and commuter parking surrounding buildings like Cox, Wheeler, Stubbs, Ruffner and more.
What's even more strict than the parking policy, is what constitutes a reason to appeal a parking ticket. I work a job that sometimes requires me to stay past midnight. At midnight, it is not safe for someone to be walking by themselves down a hardly lit street no matter how you spin it.
You are told to call the Longwood Police when you do not feel safe walking home. When I used this method my freshman year, I was heavily questioned on where I was and what factors made me feel unsafe. They made it seem as if there was not a direct threat, then it's not important.
Why am I, a 19-year-old, 5’3, college girl, feeling unsafe walking home at 2 a.m. not good enough? Why does me parking in the Stubbs Lot at night and promptly moving it when I wake up the next day deemed a punishable offense?
$350 is the cumulative amount of money that it has cost me to reassure myself, my friends and my family that I am safe. Keeping spots open for students who paid money for them is important and reasonable. What is not reasonable, however, is making it seem as though you are willing to put the safety of some students in jeopardy for the convenience of others.
Commuter spots are prime places on campus and allow ease for those students. While resident students must park in the Wynne lot which, if you live in Curry or Frazier, is about a 5-minute walk. Stubbs on the other hand, is almost a 10-minute walk.
This is where the issue comes in. I am not saying that a 10-minute walk is the worst thing to ever happen. But, what I am saying, is that when it is late at night, you cannot dictate someone’s safety and comfort level and then punish them for doing what they believe is safe.
The parking policy is there for good measure. Making sure that the commuter students have the chance to get a parking space close to their classes in case of traffic or other reasons, but when classes are out of session, I feel as though it should go without question that a resident may park there without consequence.
