Inside Iowa State

July 23, 2009

State Gym addition alters west side parking

by Anne Krapfl

When a $47 million remodel and building addition to State Gym get under way this fall, about 125 employee parking stalls adjacent to the building will be gone, some of them permanently. In anticipation of that, this summer the parking division in public safety changed the designation for several west campus lots.

Lot 1, which lies west of State Gym along Sheldon Avenue and contains approximately 125 stalls, will begin to be phased out of use around Sept. 20. Both exterior remodel work (August-January) and new construction (November 2009-August 2011) to State Gym will require that part, and eventually all, of lot 1 is a construction zone.

Following is a summary of changes made to lots in the vicinity of State Gym:

• Lot 1 (west of State Gym): previously split nearly equally between general staff and reserved parking, with another dozen spaces designated for special uses. Until it becomes a construction zone, it is a general permit lot. (Part of this lot will be recovered when the State Gym addition is completed two years from now.)
• Lot 3 (north of Thielen Student Health Center and Beyer Hall): previously split between reserved (east end) and general permit (west end). Now the whole lot is a reserved lot and all the stalls have been purchased.
• Lots 59B (east of State Gym) and 59E (east of Friley): previously designated for residence department staff. Now both lots are reserved lots and all the stalls have been purchased.
• Lot 59F (tucked between Helser and Martin residence halls): previously designated for residence department staff. Now the lot is a general permit lot.

Parking manager Mark Miller said that like most lots on campus -- particularly reserved lots -- lot 3 currently is under-used due to summer schedules. He said parking staff will monitor the west side lots when fall semester starts and when the construction begins and decide if changes are warranted.

In the meantime, he offered these recommendations for employees who prefer to park on the west side of campus: Reserve stalls are available now in lots 9 (west of Design Center), 11 (north of Town Engineering) and 22 (north of Armory). He said there is a waiting list for reserve permits in lots 2-6 (southwest corner of campus), 13 (north of Marston water tower) and 14 (Bissel Road adjacent to Sweeney).

Miller said the general permit sections of lots 9 and 11 are under-used this summer. General permit lots 10 (west of Town Engineering) and 12 (west of Communications) also are less than half full this summer.

Remodel work and a west addition to State Gym will take about 125 employee parking stalls out of use for two years.

The online campus map includes a parking lot layer that depicts lot designations.