Event Parking?
by John Berkowitz on Aug 13, 2009 8:30 PM PDT
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PrintThe UW is charging $7.00 - $15.00 to park while watching football practices at Montlake. Just when you think they are starting to get it they pull a total brain cramp and throw it in the face of a loyal core of fans who come to watch practice.
So lets say an average of 300 fans show up for all 29 pre season practices and pay an average of $11.00 to park. that means the UW would pull in $95,700 in the pre season and not a dollar of it will go to athletic department. If it was going to the athletic department perhaps I could rationalize it. since it doesn't I think it is a competely greedy move that hurts the momentum they are trying to build.
It should be all about seeling season tickets. The more excitement you build in the pre season will yield more future ticket sales...that is where the real money is.
Scott Woodward needs to get on this one...just another PR disaster waiting to happen this week.
On another note it looks like Dominique Gaisie isn't getting in and it is a UW decision rather han a clearing house decision. Word is he is likely headed for BYU and he could have gotten in anywhere in the Pac Ten except Washington.
The upper campus isn't helping the program as far as JC's are concerned. Losing a guy like Gaisie on sematics is just stupid. steve Sarkisian is going to be succesful at UW but we aren't going to keep him if the upper campus keeps making stupid decisions. Things are getting better but we have a long way to go.
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If it’s true that the Athletic Department isn’t getting any of the event parking money for people attending football practice, it is indeed a horrible move. There’s no good reason for the parking division to profit from the football team – none at all. Any proceeds from those parking charges beyond paying for the parking attendants should go to the Athletic Department, as the whole reason people are parking there in the first place is because of the football team.
so don't park in the E-1 parking lot
The practices are in the afternoon. Park on the other side of the montlake bridge and walk the 5 minutes (just a bit longer than parking in E-1 anyways). (Pretty sure it’s 2hr parking until 4pm or 5pm on weekdays) Or park on mary gates way and walk the 15 minutes through the wetlands. (parking is free at all times on all days)
7 dollars is ridiculous. 15 dollars is horrendous. A 5 minute walk stretches your legs. A 15 minute walk gets you… how does coach say it… pumped up.
John you seem a little bitter tonight…….
I am not saying parking fees are a good thing at all. Actually i do not pay for parking unless it is absoltuley neccessary.. But gailse could not make it in UW… so be it.. It is a loss ofr this year but we will be better in th elong run;.. Give me a -layer for 4 yeaers not 2 and that would be great.. we wloll be bowling this year.
We're fortunate that...
…the staff was just filling in spots for a late class last year. I don’t think you’ll see many JCs recruited in the future.
Washington Husky Football-Undefeated 1991 National Champions 12-0!
Parking
As a UW alum, and one who is just as proud of my degree as I am of my football team, I really don’t have too many problems with the University trying to generate revenue to fund budget shortfalls in one of the worst years in school history. Let’s face it – fans who want to come to practice are the hardest of die-hards and are the ones who are clearly not going to be phased by a fee for parking. It’s not like we are making it any harder for a family of four to come to a game. To label this as “greedy” is a bit of an uninformed statement and one that fails to take into consideration the financial difficulties that the University has been in since the recession began. I get that UW football fans who don’t have a connection to the school may not see the logic, but I’m betting the majority of us who remain connected to the campus in ways that go beyond just athletics might see this a different way.
As far as Gaise – I thought that the Clearinghouse was an NCAA entity, not a school entity. If the Clearinghouse is denying Gaise, would that not suggest that he was accepted by the school but that the Clearinghouse found that something in his transcripts did not meet the standards under which he was admitted? I’m not too educated on this stuff, so maybe someone could clear it up for me.
Gekko is in Vegas .. Sin City will never be the same.
Parking and Gaise
There has to be free parking some where (as HFL_Husky stated) that is free. My only problem is $7 is a weird number…why not $5? I love round numbers though.
Gaise, you win some you lose some and at UW you will lose more than you win with JC’s. Lets not dwell on what we missed but what we got. We got a solid TE in Boyce and a potential starter in Batts along with a very good punter in Mahan. Three positions we needed immediate help with. Mafoe and Gaise would have been AWESOME pick ups but no sense in worrying about it now. It doesnt seem as though Sark is going to pick up JC’s that much anyway after last year.
Be serious
Come on, do you know how much competition there is for parking in the U-district? Even in summer quarter, if they offered it for free, it would quickly fill up with students, and we’d be right back where we are.
Grow up, guys, this is how life is. If you want something, you have to pay for it.
So you are ok with paying for it?
I always look for street parking first when I go anywhere, then last resort pay.
Everybody's different...
One guy might go the lengths that it takes to find free parking and walk. Somebody else will just pay money, it is Seattle after all and major metropolitan areas tend to be more expensive. It’s great to have choices huh?
Washington Husky Football-Undefeated 1991 National Champions 12-0!
I think you should pay....but...
I think they should charge but not raise the rate to take advantage of the situation….that is my point.
by John Berkowitz on Aug 14, 2009 3:43 PM PDT up reply actions
Parking Prices?
Are the prices different than the daily parking prices near the stadium? If they are jacking the price up to take advantage of folks coming to watch practice, that’s wrong. But if you have to pay the standard fee for campus parking, why should you get a break for going to practice that I don’t get if I want to park on campus to go to the Henry Art Gallery?
Good point
…it’s way more expensive on game day.
Washington Husky Football-Undefeated 1991 National Champions 12-0!
Here’s a link to the parking policies/pricing for the UW: http://www.washington.edu/commuterservices/parking/
It looks like standard parking fees apply for anyone going to practice. Parking out in the E3 or E4 lots only costs $3, and is a shorter walk than across the bridge.
Man, I’m glad I only have to walk 5 mins over to the stadium from my office at UW.
The fees are all out of whack at UW right now. My unlimited bus pass (UPASS) went from $25/month to $45/month this year. The parking fees for faculty/staff also went up by more than double this year as well. I think they waited too long to increase fees over the years.
Parking Fees
Hi, John!
I enjoy reading your blogs nearly everyday. Thank you! Regarding fees to park, this is nothing new. I had served on the Tyee Board in years past during the Don James Era.
I had to pay to park even in those days. The only times I didn’t have to pay to park (whether during board meetings, attending practice, etc) was for the Spring Game or Picture Day or after hours. My understanding is that this is still the same today as it was then.
Parking Fees
Sorry guys, this is a silly complaint. There is not a parking spot on campus that is free at UW between the hours of 7-6PM. There are plenty of ways to avoid paying for parking at UW and I really really doubt that this is a deterrent to fans who wish to watch practice. The biggest deterrent is the fact that most of us cannot watch practice because we are at work!!!
You guys all seem to be missing the point here – it’s not that there’s a fee to park near the stadium for football practices, it’s that it sounds like none of that money from the parking fees is going towards the athletic department. You know, the source of the demand for that parking?
If the athletic department is getting the proceeds from the event parking fees (above paying the costs of the parking attendants), then there’s no reason to be upset. But if not, that’s BS.
According to the Times, there were 100 people at practice yesterday.
Some amount of them walked. Some amount were given passes (media, etc).
You’re talking about 80 or so cars that were there for practice, in the several thousand spots affected by the parking fees. Even if you triple that amount, or multiply it by 5, or 8, you still aren’t amounting to a hill of beans.
The parking fees are for the thousands of people that have meetings, classes, want to use a library, use the IMA, etc. on campus. This isn’t a vindictive “stick it to the football fans” move.
Maybe it’s just a semantics thing, but during the football practice times there have been “event parking” signs placed in the lots around the stadium. I haven’t been to a practice this week, so I don’t know if what they’re charging for parking is the same as they normally charge for those lots anyway.
And what about the weekend? Will they charge for parking for Picture Day, and if so, where will that money go?
I think you're going to the mat on the wrong issue here, kirkd.
There is, literally, not one single place on the entire campus of the University of Washington with free parking at 3:00 pm. For anybody, for any reason. That’s just the reality of a college campus in a large city.
When the English department holds a writer’s symposium on campus, the school gets the parking revenues generated, not the English department. Same with events at Meany Hall. Same with absolutely anything on campus.
I’m sure they will charge for parking on picture day. I’d be shocked if they didn’t. The money will go to the school, just like it always does. I’ll bet it was only the lack of prepardness and the traffic issues that that created that kept them from charging for the spring game.
Once again, I’m not questioning whether there is a charge for parking. I’m questioning whether parking fees charged for parking in the E-11 & E-12 lots prior and during football practices when there are signs up marked “event parking” should go to the UW parking division or to the UW athletic department.
No special event gets to keep parking revenue.
I believe that is the same for football games, but please correct me if I am wrong.
As far as the signs go, I believe they are there to alert people that it is okay to park there to watch practice (since most of the time those lots are restricted to permit holders). Sometimes you will signs that say “No Event Parking” when there are events.
When I went to the spring game I was expecting to pay “event parking” prices in the E1 lot. When I got there, I could see all the signs saying “event parking”, but when I pulled in the parking attendants waved us on by, telling us the parking was free. I thought it was cool.
Why should the AD get the fees for parking on a regular day? Do we need attendants at every lot asking people why they are visiting campus that day so that fees can be divided up. I can see it now. I pull up to the booth, “Good afternoon sir, why are you visiting the UW today?” asks the attendant.
“Well since I’m from Kitsap county and I’m here for the day, I’m going to see the exhibit at the Henry art gallery, then I’m going to watch football practice. And then I’m going to walk over to the medical complex to do a little research and see a friend who’s in the hospital.”
“Thank you. Let’s see, Henry, football, hospital, and medical library. Can you tell me how much time you plan to spend at each place?”
“Well, I was planning on 2-3 hours at the gallery, two hours at the stadium, and then probably 30 minutes in the hospital and an hour or two at the library.”
“I’m sorry sir, I need you to be more specific, will it be two or three hours at the gallery, and one or two at the library.”
“I guess it will be three a the gallery and one at the library.”
“Thank you, sir. Lets see, 3+2+.5+1=6.5. And so… let me get the calculator… 46% at the gallery, 31% at the stadium, 8% at the hospital, and 15% at the medical school. Good. Sir you’ll be glad to know that, lets see, of your $11 parking fee, $5.50 will go to operating costs, $2.58 will go to the Henry, $1.71 to the Athletic Department, 44 cents to the hospital, and 82 cents will go to the medical school. Thank you for your generous support of the UW. Now please move along quickly as there is quite a long line behind you.”
Nice strawman argument there.
Here’s the reality – the UW is putting up signs saying “event parking” in the E-11 & E-12 lots and it’s because they consider Husky football practice to be an “event” (and that is the case according to Chris Fetters). People parking in those lots are there for Husky football, and if they’re not, they at least have seen signs saying there’s some kind of “event” going on and choose to park in that lot anyway.
If there’s money being charged for that “event” parking, it should go to the UW athletic department.
First it wasn’t a strawman, it was a response to the argument it appeared you were making. You have clarified your position, but your position wasn’t clear when I wrote my response.
I can think of a couple reasons for the signs.
1. Identify that those lots are open for parking during football practice. Not everyone who might go to practice are familiar enough with the U-district to know they can park right next to the stadium on weekdays. Particularly with light rail construction having already started to affect that area.
2. University officials want to keep traffic for practice to the southeast section of campus and avoid extra traffic on main campus.
3. Identify to those that do know they can park there on weekdays that there may be more folks than normal parking there and that they might want to park elsewhere.
Do you know that the AD gets parking fees on game day? I was always under the impression that the money for parking on game day went to the general coffers and not to the AD.
Do you know that the AD gets parking fees on game day? I was always under the impression that the money for parking on game day went to the general coffers and not to the AD.
I do not know. I think that’s another situation where the revenue should go to the athletic department. When you consider that the athletic department does not draw money from Upper Campus, I see no reason that Upper Campus should profit from revenue that is clearly due to football.
What was strawman about your argument was your extrapolation that my position would logically lead to trying to break down all parking revenue by specific departments within the UW. The fact of the matter is that the Athletic Department is quite detached from the rest of the University, much in the same way that the UW Medical Center is. There’s an obvious connection, but also quite a bit of autonomy. As I noted above, the fact that the UW Athletic Department doesn’t draw from the general University budget means that it would be most fair to put parking revenue clearly generated by the Athletic Department back into the Athletic Department.
I have no idea how the monies generated by parking fees get distributed back within the University, but I’d hazard a guess that essentially it goes back to the University general fund, and is thus further distributed within the sub-areas like the School of Arts & Sciences, Business School, Henry Art Gallery, Burke Museum, etc.
should the AD get that revenue?
you keep saying it should, but you don’t really say why. They may be the source of demand, but they do not actually provide the parking services or the accommodating real estate.
Its not a big deal at the end of the day – certainly not a PR nightmare – but it is useful to remember that there are a number of worthy causes requiring funds at the UW beyond just athletics.
Gekko is in Vegas .. Sin City will never be the same.
The athletic department doesn’t pull any funds away from the general University budget, unlike at most schools. It’d be one thing if the UW athletic department relied upon Upper Campus for funding – then I could see justification for the parking division to profit from the interest created by the athletic department. But it doesn’t, so I think it would be fair for those “event parking” funds to go back to the athletic department.
I had sent an e-mail to the AD on this issue late last week, and got a response from Liz McFarland, Assistant AD. She confirmed that the AD doesn’t receive any of the money collected from the event parking fees for football practices. She also pointed out that every AD from the time she’s been there (’92 on up) has lobbied for the AD to receive at least some portion of those funds, and that Woodward intends to continue lobbying for some of that money.
U district
It’s the most heavily populated area in Seattle and parking fees shouldn’t be a surprise. I always know that, unless told otherwise, when you come to the U parking is not free.
Washington Husky Football-Undefeated 1991 National Champions 12-0!
AD, parking, clearinghouse, etc
I have been reading about what other teams need for success for their football team this season. And I haven’t yet found "need a win with the “clearinghouse” , or "need a supportive and strong AD dept. And. “need to get the university to support the team”. But here at UW, those are indeed things we have to deal with. When the NCAA came down on Don James, the school threw him to the wolves, let the team be trashed and decimated because “upper campus” just doesn’t give a rats a** about football. Hiring non-football AD’s (Hedges, etc) or inexperienced AD’s (Woodward), setting one of the hardest OOC schedules in the country for revenue purposes ONLY, making worthy transfers from JC’s not acceptable to their tweedy standards (JC’s, at UW? are you kidding me? harrumph), holding onto coaches who are clearly destroying the team (TW) because they don’t care (what other reason could there possibly be?) Look guys, this is the 800 lb gorilla in the corner. And hardly anybody mentions it. Everyone just accepts this as if, here at UW this is just the way it is. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? What other great Unuversity football team has to go through this? Unless and until these problems are addressed, things will stay the same. I have nothing but love for my alma mater and my Huskies and I believe we now finally have a superior coaching staff, but these admin idiots need to support them and then get out of the way.
Sorry for the rant but I am tried of watching this happen year after year and watching how other teams build their successful seasons with supportive “upper campus” and AD offices that are experienced and know how to build winning programs.
Let's take a few breaths and take one thing at a time...
…everything is NOT broken in the AD. There have been tons of positive changes, the biggest being TW is gone! Sark is onboard and the buzz it back! Keep focused on the bg picture and the vast majority of it is positive!
Washington Husky Football-Undefeated 1991 National Champions 12-0!
Parking Fees and the "real" scandal
I don’t mind parking fees, I’m glad to add a little extra money to the UW, although I wish it would go soley to the athletic department. I am surprised that prices seem to be rising, during spring practice it was simply $6 and that was it. Gekko is the numbers guy, but it doesn’t make sense to me during hard times to raise prices. The E1 lot is never more than half full on any given day, so why not keep keep prices the same or even cut them and try and get more people parking their?
The real scandal: like I said, I don’t mind spending money on parking, but the real scandal happened at the spring game. It was posted EVERYWHERE that parking was $6, and anytime afternoon was free because it was a saturday. Yet when I showed up at 12:20 ish, they were still charging for parking. Being a knowledgable guy, I asked why, and the only thing they would say was because our manager told us to keep charging. What bugs me is saying one thing, then doing another. Don’t tell me it will be free, then charge me because you can put me in a situation where I have little or no choice.
I agree with John, this is stupid and petty, Woodward better get a handle on it before they make themselves look like donkeys, just for a few pennies.
"Bow Down to Washington"
"Kick the tires and light the fires!"
Options
Lear, I guess you should have turned around and parked off campus. If it was really that important to you to save those bucks, then that’s what you should have done. As for me, I’m thinking that this money is going to the UW in one way or another, so who cares? I don’t go to many events at the UW, but when I do, it really doesn’t bother me to pay a few bucks for parking. I am a very frugal person by nature, so believe me, I understand where you’re coming from. I think we need to keep things in perspective though, and not let this gravitate into the depths of negativity.
Washington Husky Football-Undefeated 1991 National Champions 12-0!
Don't mind spending the money
I just can’t stand being told one thing, to then do the other. I’m all for supporting the UW in every way possible, but if you have a policy that you told the public would be in place, you better stick to it.
"Bow Down to Washington"
"Kick the tires and light the fires!"
ON THE BRIGHT SIDE...
Kasen Williams attended practice!!!!!!!!!!!
Washington Husky Football-Undefeated 1991 National Champions 12-0!
Agree
To much time on parking fees not enough on the fact UW is back!
by bigdave967 on Aug 14, 2009 7:45 PM PDT via mobile up reply actions
that was funny ...
… is it a recruiting violation if he was comped the $6 … or did they just change the scandalous signs from $6 to FREE when they saw him rolling up in his ride?
Gekko is in Vegas .. Sin City will never be the same.
They probably told him to park...
…in some little area where it would be free. Small potatoes compared to what goes on around the rest of the country.
Washington Husky Football-Undefeated 1991 National Champions 12-0!
was heaps there with him??
although I love that he’s showing interest in the program, I refuse to get excited about recruits until they sign on the dotted line. been burrnt too many times.
parking fees
The parking lots have always charged for parking lot during the day on week days and till noon on saturdays(except for game days). They probably always will. I think it is just cuz very few of us have ever attended a practice before this year that this seems out of line.
Some Facts (and a little opinion sprinkled in :-)
Alright, I know a lot about parking and did enough research on the UW’s program to know a little about it. Here are some facts:
- Parking revenues from Game Days go to the AD.
- Parking revenues from all other days goes to UW Commuter services which operates at an annual loss (MANY millions of dollars this year alone) because they support the UPASS program to encourage students, faculty and staff to bus to campus.
- The UW has a little over 12,000 parking spaces on campus and upwards of 65,000 people on campus daily. Because of this, they must encourage bus ridership through discounted UPASSES. If not, the vast majority of people coming to campus each day would never find a parking spot.
I won’t get into all the formulas and such on how urban planners and parking professionals calculate costs, but basically it’s based on supply, demand, and keeping a limited inventory of available spaces so there is always SOME parking available. If you want to park two blocks from Pike Place Market, you’re going to find a spot, but it may cost you $40.
The UW UPASS program is a nationally recognized success story because it has been so instrumental in getting people out of cars and on buses. Even if you put aside the environmental impact (for conservative folks who don’t like “social engineering” programs) if the program were not in place, demand for parking at an urban university such as the UW would be so high that projected parking prices at this point would be in the $40 daily range instead of the $15 fee as it now stands.
Another issue unique to the area around Husky Stadium is that it is directly across from the UW Medical center. If parking were cheap or free, students faculty and staff would park enmasse down there and there would be no spaces available for patients and visitors.
The gist of all this (besides the fact I’m starting to sound like a know-it-all) is that if you want cheap or free parking, head out to Pullman and pay under $5 to park for the day. If you want to live in the big city and play with the big DAWGS, you’ll have to either set aside a good chunk of your income park or you can ride the bus.
by High Cost of Free Parking on Aug 14, 2009 6:39 PM PDT reply actions
c'mon, don't ruin a good post with FACTS ... what are you thinking?
Gekko is in Vegas .. Sin City will never be the same.
UW Official Roster
Take it with a grain of salt.
“Fogerson also brings added heft to the position. Listed at 191 pounds, he said he’s actually about 210, about eight more than a year ago.”
Seattle Times-BC’s Blog
Washington Husky Football-Undefeated 1991 National Champions 12-0!
Once again I am not saying they shouldn't charge to park....
I am just saying don’t raise the prices to take advantage of the situation by calling it a special event. I think I should have been more clear in my original post by stating that.
For the record I can’t remember too many times when I had free parking at UW and don’t expect it….just don’t raise the prices to take advantage of the situation.
I also agree with the folks that say find parking across the bridge and walk…I have been doing that for years.
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