In a move that came as little surprise to faculty, staff and students, UNM Parking and Transportation Services announced Friday a plan to extend its jurisdiction beyond parking lots to include bicycle racks, desks and restroom stalls.
"We feel that it's in the best interest of students to make sure that no one takes up any space on campus without the proper permit," said Hector Pi§eda, parking and transportation director. "The shortage of racks, desks and toilets at UNM isn't going to get any better, and we need to make sure that everyone gets a fair chance to use them."
UNM secondary education student Andrea Sorensen said she learned about parking services' ticket accumulation rollover policy the hard way. She spent most of Friday afternoon stuck in a Mitchell Hall women's restroom stall after her leg was fitted with a 200-pound yellow boot.
"I had five parking tickets already that I hadn't paid for, but I didn't know they counted towards restroom stall use," she said. "Thank God I had my cell phone on me so my mom could go pay off my bill."
Sorensen admitted she had let the two-minute meter run out as she caught up on the assigned reading for her class.
Civilization class.
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"But the whole time I was down there, like two people came in to use one of the eight stalls," she said. "It's not like there wasn't enough for everyone. And this whole boot thing - isn't that a little Draconian?"
Sophomore music major Raphael Guttierez said he wasn't sure what to think about the bicycle parking ticket he received Friday afternoon in front of Johnson Gym.
"Geez, the meter had, like, just run out, and this lady comes zipping up in that golf cart while I'm unlocking my bike and writes me a $20 ticket," he said. "My bike isn't even worth $20."
Many students entering Zimmerman Library Friday afternoon were surprised to find new coin-operated meters attached to each study carrel. Chairs in the Willard Reading Room were fitted with similar devices Thursday night in preparation for students' arrival Friday morning. One half hour of studying costs $.25, and coins can be entered to a maximum time limit of two hours.
Certain portions of the walls at all of UNM's library facilities have been painted yellow to indicate 'no studying zones.'
Physics student Lee Ching said he was disturbed to find that he could no longer spread his notebooks and laptop computer on the floor in a quiet corner of Centennial Science and Engineering Library.
"I've been studying here for three years, and no one has ever used this space for anything" he said, gesturing toward the empty, but freshly-painted area of bare concrete floor. "Oh well. I think my bike meter's about to run out anyway."
Provost Morris Cohen said students should be patient as the campus adjusts to the new policies, adding that the wearable outdoor bench permits would soon be as fashionable as Old Navy ball caps.
"We see (this policy) as a positive change for the University that will enable us to grow to meet the dynamic educational and economic needs of our community," he said.
According to a report from the UNM Office of Statistics, the campus has about 400 toilets to serve the university's 24,000 students. The report also showed that the campus has only seven bike racks - with one rack representing space for one bicycle - that are in operational condition. No shortage of desks was indicated in the report.
"Oh, that - well, we thought the desk-use meters would just be a new revenue source for the University," Pi§eda said, leaning back into a supple, new Aeron leather office chair and kicking his well-heeled feet up onto his recently purchased desk.
