Column by Kelly Wiley

For four years this university has received thousands upon thousands of dollars and a dedication to leave this university debt free.

Although many complaints have left my lips on the many ridiculous costs of higher education, never once have those complaints been directed to the parking Nazis who make a living by ruining a student’s day with a glorious citation.

Four years have past, and that day has finally come.

Of all the avenues UK has to make money from students — tuition, parking permits and library fines — they still feel the need to pull the wool over our eyes.

Want an example?

For four years, the E-Lot behind the W. T. Young Library has been accessible to students after 3:30 p.m. However, since the library has so many night time staffers, they felt the need to make that lot a 24-hour, controlled E-Lot where students can no longer park — even if they are actually going to the library to study. What kind of a person uses a library to study? Seriously.

While no one was looking, they just so happened to change the sign, disallowing students to park in the lot. And, of course, for four years that lot, more importantly the sign, had remained the same.

You can imagine the number of people who parked there and came out to find a nice little sheet of paper with a yellow envelope on their windshield. And of course, with my luck, one of those glorious citations graced my windshield as well.

Did the university ever plan on telling its students they had changed the lot, or were they simply going to sit, watching from afar, as half the student body got a ticket?

Over 200 students were ticketed one glorious Saturday when they attempted to park their cars in the lot behind the library.

Taking the only logical step UK changed the lot, not only for those night-time staffers, but also so students would not park there on game day. At least that’s what they claim.

Ever heard of a yard sign? No? Well these are big pieces of cardboard used to write messages on and then shoved into the earth.

Instead of ticketing numerous students after changing the lot, why not purchase a yard sign from Lowe’s for $6, a red Sharpie from Office Depot for $1, and simply write “NO GAMEDAY PARKING”?

Everyone here was accepted into this university, so we have to have some brains. And yes, even though many students overlooked the sign that had been the same for four years, many would probably recognize a new sign with red writing, read it and easily find somewhere else to park. Give us a little credit, we can read a sign with big, bold letters.

If there really was an honest-to-God reason for changing the sign, at least send us a courtesy e-mail.

We did get accepted to college, but we aren’t psychics. With a massive mailing list, an e-mail could have been sent to students in 2.2 seconds.

Plus, where are students supposed to park? It seems like everywhere you look on campus you are met with an E-Lot sign or a ‘No Parking’ sign.

Walking from K-Lot to the library at 2 a.m. is highly unsafe and extremely unnecessary when all the lots on campus are pretty much abandoned at that hour anyway.

Most students paid $232 for a piece of paper to hang on their rearview mirror. That should count for something, right?

That $25 citation placed on my windshield is now on my dashboard. Chances are it’s going to sit on the dashboard until registration rolls around, and I’m absolutely forced to pay.

So, UK Parking, don’t expect to see my $25 dollars anytime soon, I’m still recovering from paying $4,179 to get an education.

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