As the number of student drivers at Yosemite High School
increases, so does the growing need for parking spaces. So what have school
officials done to solve this problem? They have put Kevyn Moberly, director of
maintenance, operations and transportation, to the challenge of building a new
lot.
Currently, students have been parking at the strip mall as
an overflow when the main lots are full. On average, 20 cars normally fill the
strip. Lack of space, therefore, has become the number one reason for a new
lot.
The new parking lot will be located behind what is now the
varsity softball field. The softball field will first be moved to where the
junior varsity baseball field is, along with several other changes to that area
of the campus.
Also, before the actual pavement for the lot can be put in,
the field needs to be leveled. Besides this, the workers will be making many
alterations to the high school at the same time. Since so much work is
necessary, construction won't begin for at least a year.
While the parking issue will take time and lots of labor,
the end result will be an asset to the campus, Moberly says. The new lot will
be located closer to events on the field (and with a campus this size, anything
under a five minute walk is bliss, many student say).
Besides the parking lot itself, there is the question of
permits. Some students wonder if they should really be required. Several
students find the idea of permits useless. High school junior Kevan Kolander
claims "We never needed them before, and there's no point in having them
now because most of the cars out there don't have them anyway."
Ryan Brazil, a senior who also drives, doesn't support the
permit rule either. Though both students disagreed with the permits, most
students attending the high school support the plans for a new lot.