Written By: Jacob Hallberg
The fall and spring semesters at Front Range Community College can cause quite the predicament for students attending their classes. The influx of vehicle traffic and seeming lack of spots can cause students to be late for their classes and just generally be stressful. Often times students will leave from home at a time that positions their arrival a few minutes before class starts, only to be foiled when their favorite parking spots are taken. This additional time spent searching for new spots adds time to an already tight schedule and before the student knows it, they’re five to ten minutes late to their classes.
The most obvious and straightforward solution to this growing problem would be to just show up to class earlier, however, for some students their limited schedule does not allow for any slight alterations. Many students are caught in between work and school and for the more time constricted students, work and school fall side by side, eating away at the available time between classes.
The parking lots here at Front Range Community College can get partially filled during peak times of the day and it’s essential to know when and where to park to optimize the time spent going to and from class. Peak times seem to be Monday – Friday, morning through early afternoon. Fridays tend to have fewer classes, and therefore more parking, and the same seems to be true of classes that start later in the afternoon and into the evening.
The most alluring attraction to parking locations are the spots closest to the main entrances of the school. Students see the appeal and imagine a short walk to their classes. Consequently, these parking spots are filled quickly, especially during peak times of the day. These spots attract many individuals who assume that by searching each row closest to the building they will save vital minutes in their walking endeavors. This common thought and misconception can be seen from afar while observing parking habits. Avoid endlessly searching the closest rows of parking while attending class during busy times of the day. Instead, immediately find spots located farther away and park. Not only will you find a spot immediately, the time saved by parking farther away will usually be greater than the time saved by scouring through the front rows of parking spots.
The next thing to consider when parking is the general location you first go to park. Front Range Community College-Westminster has an abundance of parking locations all throughout the campus. The first thing to do would be to know the location of your future classes, especially during the first couple weeks of class. Based on this information you can now make an educated determination of the parking location that best matches your class criteria. Typically, if you are going to a Math or English class one would park towards the east end of the campus. Math and English class are congregated towards this end of this campus. Additionally, the eastern end of the campus almost always has available parking spots. As the main entrances to the school lie mostly on the mid-western end some students forgo any parking options on the eastern end drastically increasing their travel time to their classes.
While the eastern end usually has an overcrowded parking there is one location located on the far east end of campus that maintains open parking regardless of the time of day. The parking located at the College Hill Library is the furthest away from classes, but will always have locations available to students. This parking location is great for students who plan on studying during their day at the College Hill Library offers quiet and ample study locations. However, this parking location is the furthest from any of the classes at Front Range Community College so this parking is open for its inability to be near classes.
The mid-west parking locations near Entrance One and Entrance Two are the most popular parking destinations. These are located in the core of the campus and provide quick access to all of the facilities within the campus, especially the High Plains Fitness Center and Welcome Center. However, due to their popularity parking is scarce and it is oftentimes better to pick a location further away from the heart of the campus to alleviate time loss while searching for a parking spot. Additionally, the heart of the campus boasts a large cafeteria which also sees heavy use. Another reason to mitigate your losses by parking further away.
At first look, students might assume that all of the parking spots lie in the front of Front Range Community College. However, in the back (north side) is a large selection of open parking that students often are unaware of. Students can enter the parking located in the back of the campus by driving through the far east side of the campus past the normal eastern parking. Alternatively, the eastern most traffic light provides access to the back parking lot when traveling on 113th Ave. These parking locations cover the vast majority of the campus, including the heart and due to their “hidden” nature, are unfilled in comparison to their southern counterparts. These parking spots offer access to all levels of the school and even smaller entrances which are hardly used by the general student population. Particularly entrance 6.5 which is located on the far east side of the campus which has stairs leading up to both levels of the school and holds a great location for many of the classes taken at Front Range Community College. Many of the north entrances provide easy access for B level classes, so many of the math and science classes.
In the event of an accident, it’s best to notify Westminster Campus Security at 303-404-5411 as soon as possible. They will determine if Westminster Police Services need to be notified.
Parking at Front Range Community College can be a troublesome encounter at first, but after a semester of parking and observing the peak times of the day, your time loss can be relieved through smart parking choices. Often the parking is centralized around the mid-west portion of the campus during mid-day and if your classes lie within those time constraints, then learning correct parking tricks is essential to maintain an effective schedule.
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