Parking strategically on campus

Syracuse University students who have cars — but no driveways in which to keep them — can park on the city streets near the university, or they can buy permits to park in lots around the main campus and South Campus areas.

Junior public health major Jeremy French-Lawyer, a commuter student, began using street parking this year, but she eventually spent the money to get a parking pass for the Skytop lot near South Campus.

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“I was parking [on Walnut Avenue] and I ended up getting a ticket for parking on the wrong side of the road, so I decided it was worth it,” she said.

Several options exist on campus for student permit parking. With the proper permit, students can park their cars in 10 different lots during the daytime, said Al Sauer, SU’s director of parking and transit services. Parking services sells students about 4,500 such parking permits each school year, he said.

If the demand required it, SU could add about 1,500 to 2,000 parking spaces by paving what is now a gravel lot, Sauer said. That demand, however, has never existed, and it doesn't look like it will soon.

Parking passes for lots around South Campus, Manley Field House and Skytop cost students about $75 each for the academic year, Sauer said. South Campus parking passes are normally issued only to South Campus residents, but any students except freshmen can buy passes for Skytop and Manley. Passes for main campus lots like West Campus or the lots near Flint, Day and Shaw cost about $300 for an academic year.

The most expensive options are the six garages around main campus — they cost around $750 per academic year, Sauer said. He said the lots at Manley and the West Campus area are the biggest and probably the most popular.