Parking Map

This is a screen shot of the parking layout map provided by Lehigh's Parking Services' website.  The yellow indicates available student parking that does not require a permit (i.e. the only other parking besides the spot they pay $200 for to park outside of their resident halls).  Notice, the limited amount of yellow space (I counted 12) that exist between Johnson Hall and East Packard (because East Packard is considered off campus, and students are subjected to the rip off $0.25 per 15 minutes from that point on).

Why did they ever get rid of that parking lot in front of the UC? Lehigh, we needed that space...

Parking At Lehigh

As my first post about an actual Lehigh problem, I want to focus on something that has recently become an even bigger burden for Lehigh students - parking.  As of post-winter break, Bethlehem decided to DOUBLE their meter parking prices.  Lehigh students arrived back at school on Monday morning expecting to get the usual 30 minutes for their quarter,  but were instead surprised to find if they strategically planned how many quarters to bring that they were short half of the money needed.  You now only get 15 minutes per quarter, which is a big hit for Lehigh students whose 1 hour 15 minute class is now going to cost them $1.50 to park every time.

Now, to be fair, Bethlehem raising the parking prices is technically not Lehigh's fault.  However, due to the lack of parking availability on campus, it forces students who want to drive to class to have no other choice but to park at meter spots off campus.  And even for the lucky students who find convenient parking on campus, a quarter will only allow you 20 minutes of parking.  This small pocket change really begins to add up after a while.

The worst part about the parking at Lehigh is the fact that on top of paying (approximately) $54,020 for tuition, there is an extra $200 charge in order to obtain a parking permit.  And this parking permit virtually gets you no where.  After paying $6220 to live in on-campus housing, you are required to pay an additional $200 in order to park outside your residence hall.  And on top of that, you have to pay every single day to park on the lower part of campus.  My next post will have a follow up of both student perspectives and reasons to justify the crazy parking prices and lack of availability of parking on Lehigh's campus.

No Place Is Perfect

I am a firm believer in the theory that no place is perfect - somebody will be able to find a flaw in every single place in the world.  And flaws differ between people, based on their opinions, beliefs, values, and roles that they play within that specific community.  This blog is aimed at openly discussing the many, or maybe to some not-so-many, problems that exist at the prestigious, nationally ranked school, Lehigh University.

Now, this blog is not meant to be a place to lash out and trash talk Lehigh.  As a junior, I have grown to love Lehigh for everything it has to offer, even with its quirks and problems (which personally, I believe there are quite a few).  But to each his own, and some of you may disagree with me.  I hope to be able to connect with other students, alumni, faculty and staff members who agree or disagree with some prevalent problems that exist on this campus.  I hope to incorporate perspectives from all sides of the presumed "problems," and create a forum in which solutions and constructive criticism can be offered.  Maybe you don't agree something is a problem, but that's okay.  Everyone is different, and everyone interprets things differently.  But it cannot be denied, as I said in my opening, no place is perfect.

This blog is a more serious take on the comical twitter account "@LehighProblems."  I am not the Lehigh Problems tweeter, however, I hope to link this blog up with the Lehigh Problems hashtag.