Overcrowded parking lot creates more chaos
February 11, 2016
As more students are starting to drive to school, parking is becoming very limited and parking spots are more difficult to find.
“I always come super late and there’s limited parking as it is,” senior Lorenzo Escobar said. “Now that it’s blocked off, we have to be creative and make our own
Senior Jeremy James waits in the parking lot with his friends after they parked their cars before school starts. By
this time, the parking lot is full and students and staff have to search for spaces in order to be in class on time.
parking spots. I come late to class frequently because of parking, at least three times a week.”
In January, Principal Deb Smith prohibited student drivers to park along the interior fence in front of the campus. Since there’s construction on the service road between
Daniel Pearl Magnet High School and Valley Alternative Magnet, the magnet buses need the front of the school open. In case the construction blocks the road for the buses. So far the buses haven’t had to pull up in front but the staff is prepared.
An Information Technology building consisting of computer frames inside is being built for the Los Angeles Unified School District, between the service road and Valley Alternative Magnet.
“If the road encroaches the magnet buses, they’ll come through the front and we don’t know day to day when that’ll happen,” Smith said.
Since there is difficulty finding parking before school starts, Smith asked the students to arrive to school earlier to ensure they have parking spots. The interior fence gave student drivers extra spots in case they came to school late and couldn’t find parking. The ban caused students to park along the side interior fence and arrive late to first period.
“I have no trouble finding parking because I come to school early,” senior Marcello Vispi said.
According to Smith, ever since students stopped parking along the interior fence, traffic in the morning flows better and faster. The traffic is not being blocked and slowed down by student cars that were in the way.
“There are no student cars to block parents dropping off their children in the morning,” Smith said. “The students are parking at the end of the row and that’s not a problem.”
There are also complaints of parents of this school and staff from other schools occupying the school’s limited parking spaces. A staff member, possibly a teacher, parked her car at the DPMHS lot and walked over to the school next door,
Valley Alternative Magnet. This frustrates student drivers who need those parking spaces. Campus security Madge Wooten makes sure to remove anyone who is not conducting business here, as they don’t have priority to park over the staff and students.
“I have removed them,” Wooten said. “I tell them you cannot park here before 8 a.m., until there are spaces left over after our students and staff have parked.”
There are extra available spaces, if students come early enough and need parking. North of DPMHS between Valley Alternative Magnet and the service road provide extra parking. Smith doesn’t encourage it but will allow it if needed.
“We clearly are limited and we’ve never seen this many students driving cars,” Smith said.
