“Parking at Blaine Sucks!”

Image+courtesy+of+Vancouver+Sun

Image courtesy of Vancouver Sun

Dylan Driste, Blueprint Staff Member

 

“Parking at Blaine sucks!” You’ve probably heard this quote a lot this year. A recent issue at Blaine High School has been the state of the parking lot. Students have been claiming that there are not enough spaces for them to park in the mornings, and it is true. Many times students that arrive later, sometimes just before the start of  the school day or even after a couple of hours due to PSEO or an appointment, have nowhere to park in the student lots. This has led to many issues including students parking in the teacher lot or on along the side of Bengal Drive. Some teachers are now not able to find space in the lot that is reserved for them due to students parking there because they are unable to find a space.

Some people have not been affected by this, but quite a few have, leading to many frustrations. As one student put it “The administration hands out more passes than they should. If I’m running a little late, I can’t find a spot, adding to the issue.” Another student complained that they “hate it that out of district students need to wake up five hours early just to get a parking spot.”

An interview with Mr. Johnson, a principal here at Blaine revealed a few of the key issues of this situation. The simple issue, he says, is that there is not enough parking spaces. This is because of two things: too many parking passes sold and too many individuals parking without buying a pass. This has created more problems in itself, arising emotion in those who purchased a pass and unsafe parking along bengal drive. Mr. Johnson says students cannot park there because of “fire and emergencies.” He states, however, that if you have an issue parking and you have a parking pass you should work with them not around them. There won’t be consequences if you explain the situation to them immediately. Despite this, there is no specific solution for the problem this school year besides attempting to remove those without passes, but they are working on a solution for the future. Mr. Johnson stated that next year Blaine will sell “less passes to sophomores.” He also explained of a bond to be voted on 2017 to expand the parking lot.

While there is no permanent solution, the school is taking steps ensure that parking at Blaine will be fair for everyone. Maybe this issue will be solved for next year and we can all return to our happy parking ways.