Wednesday, November 7, 2001

UCC closes parking lot to TCU
By Kristin Campbell
Staff Reporter

TCU students, faculty and staff looking for a parking space in the University Christian Church parking lot on the southwest corner of McPherson and Rogers Avenues might have to continue their search elsewhere.

Erin Munger/PHOTO EDITOR Due to construction at University Christian Church, the UCC parking lot is now closed to commuters.

The lot, which has between 170 and 200 spaces was closed indefinitely to TCU students, faculty and staff Monday due to overcrowding and increased competition for parking spaces, especially in the morning, said Jerri Robbins, UCC director of communications.

Robbins said people coming to UCC for various weekday programs and church construction workers could not find parking in the church-owned lot because cars with frog-shaped parking stickers filled the spaces.

Robbins said the lot closure is permanent and not a result of construction.

The expansion project is scheduled to be finished by late April 2002, she said.

Robbins said a fence splitting the parking lot was removed last week. She said half of the lot was designated for UCC users and the other half was open for TCU commuters, but the strictly UCC half did not meet the church’s parking needs.

Concerns about pedestrian safety also prompted R. Scott Colglazier, senior minister, and Steve Martin, minister of operations, to decide last week to close the lot, Robbins said.

“We understand how hard it is for students to find parking,” Robbins said. “We certainly open other lots to TCU commuters.”

She said TCU commuters can still park in the lot on the northeast corner of University Drive and Cantey Street and in the lot on the northwest corner of Cantey Street and Rogers Avenue.

Brent Erdman, a senior advertising/public relations major, said he was disappointed Tuesday morning when a security officer told him that he was not allowed to park in the lot.

“This sucks,” Erdman said. “It’s a big parking lot. There’s at least 100 empty spaces.”

Mary Hambrick, a security officer with Pyramid Protective Services, Inc., said UCC hired her to patrol the lot and ensure that TCU students, faculty and staff obey the signs banning them from parking.

If a TCU commuter car was parked in the lot, Hambrick said she could call TCU Police to have the car towed. She said no cars have been towed as of press time.

Hambrick said she was hired to patrol the lot until Friday but her contract may be extended depending on the need to deter possible violators.

She said she was shocked by the polite responses she received from students she turned away Monday but she was not as impressed with the way one faculty member spoke to her.

“People do get angry but they can’t yell at me if I’m nice,” Hambrick said. “The students are very respectful and that’s cool. One professor challenged me and was very rude.”

Kristin Campbell
k.a.campbell@student.tcu.edu