By this time next year, students may have access to 348 new parking spaces. These spaces will be attached to Parking Structure 3, where two new stories will be added.
A local architectural firm, Fletcher Farr Ayotte (FFA), has been assigned the tasks of making Parking Structure 3 up to seismic code and adding the 348 new parking spaces.
In order to begin working on the project, two approvals are necessary. The first came from the Central City Parking Review where the addition of two stories and 348 new parking places was approved. The next approval, the Design Review Process, took place Thursday, Oct. 4. This approval decided on the design and layout of the parking structure.
“It was a very positive presentation,” FFA project manager Phil Rude said.
There are some small details — such as color and other design elements — that still must be approved before construction begins. Another meeting will be held on Nov. 1 to approve the final drawings.
“I am 99.9 percent sure that the two new stories be finalized and approved,” project manager Burt Ewart said.
The new addition will be composed of steel, as opposed to cement like the other parking structures. From start to finish, construction should only take about eight months according to Ewart. During the spring term of 2002, parking will be limited in Parking Structure 3, and during the summer term of 2002, parking will be fully closed. Both the project managers and architects hope to have Parking Structure 3 closed for a total of three months.
But Parking Structure 3’s appearance won’t be limited to the addition of the new levels. There are also plans to add an enclosed glass elevator to the center of the structure, which will also have a complete seismic upgrade. The architects are hoping that if an earthquake does occur, the structure won’t “pancake” in the disaster. The two other parking structures located on PSU’s campus do not need these upgrades. They have both been approved as being completely safe.
With an approximate six percent increase a year in students, parking is becoming even scarcer.
“PSU has less parking to student ratio than any other university in the nation other than George Washington University,” Ewart said.
Looking to be fully operational in the fall of 2002, students will have 348 more chances to find a parking space before they find themselves late for a class.