As the number of parking spots around the Homewood campus continues to decrease, neighboring communities are tightening parking restrictions and demanding increased enforcement on pre-existing parking permit policies.
On a block-by-block basis, many Hopkins neighbors are petitioning for residential parking permit designation (RPP) as construction projects and increased car ownership have both reduced the number of available parking spaces and increased the demand for the few remaining ones.
Some communities with pre-existing RPP policies, such as Oakenshawe, which has a 26-year-old program, are pushing for tighter enforcement of existing rules.
"We need to have our streets cleared and allow our residents to park. ... There's been a huge influx of cars; we have to intervene on behalf of the residents," said Rebecca Brdiger, co-president of the Oakenshawe Neighborhood Association.
According to Bridger, enforcement has been stepped up periodically since June and has led to improved availability in neighborhood parking.
The RPP areas are designated by street signs that limit non-resident parking to a two-hour basis, with a $42 fine for violators. Students living RPP areas can apply for a permit through Baltimore Parking Authority. However, students renting sublets may not obtain a permit because proof of residency, such as a lease or utility bill, is required.
The tightening restrictions will pose difficulties for car-owning undergraduates living in sublets within a mile of campus. They can neither apply for an RPP nor park on campus under the existing policy.
Also, students whose cars are not registered in Maryland are required to register for a Maryland MVA non-resident permit as the Baltimore Parking Authority cannot issue an RPP permit for over 60 days to non-Maryland vehicles.
Construction at and around the Homewood campus has been cited as a significant contributor to the lack of parking spaces. Thus far 610 spaces are eliminated due to the Decker Quad construction and the developments related to Charles Village Projects are expected to absorb another 120 spaces.
The reduction of on-campus parking is forcing University drivers -- staff, faculty, students and visitors -- to park in surrounding communities, provoking surrounding neighborhoods to step up the push for regulation and enforcement.
The newly-opened San Martin Center garage partially relieves the parking shortage by providing 339 spaces on the western edge of campus. Accoridng to Greg Smith, the loss of on-campus parking is mostly expected to be replaced with the Ellerslie and Eastern campus satellite lots that are connected by shuttles. The shuttles run at 10 or 20 minute intervals, taking about 10 minutes to reach Homewood from the satellite lots. Shuttle trips are scheduled for as early as 5:40 a.m. but only run until 9:35 p.m.
University parking can cost anywhere between $30 /month for the satellite lots to $95/month for on-campus garage reserved parking. However, as of Sept. 26, the only available options are the Ellerslie satellite lot and garage parking at the San Martin Center, the latter of which costs $70/month.
A gradual increase in residence density and car ownership over the past decades is another cause for the growing difficulty to find parking space. Seventeen-foot wide row houses with street parking for one car can house as many as six students, while more than one student may own a car. Likewise, families with two working parents may have two cars. According to Charles Village Civic Association President Beth Bullamore, some row houses have as many as five cars each.
Apartment buildings such as the Charles and Wyman Towers lead a more severe version of the type of shortage mentioned above.
This combination of students owning cars offcampus and construction reducing on-campus parking for staff and Hopkins events is leading to what Salem Reiner, director of Community Affairs, describes as an "aggravated" community.
"Most people don't listen c9 It's sort of getting to a point where something needs to be done," Reiner said.
Community residents now field a list of parking grievances that they believe the University is at least partly responsible for.
A sample of these complaints include students' cars being parked for weeks on end, non-resident cars congregated around shuttle stops and the lack of residential parking during University hours. Many residences have complained that they needed to go as far as four blocks away to find parking.
"This is not a student versus residents problem, this is everybody's problem; we're just trying to manage the problem. I don't know how, there's not going to be a one size fits all for community," said Bullamore.
Nonetheless, many stud-entsbelieve in the benefits of having a car at hand. "Having a car makes it more convenient when I need to go home c9 It lets me live on my own schedule," said senior Brian Follweiler, who brought his car from his home in Pennsylvania during sophomore year and has since accumulated over $600 in parking fines.
Follweiler, however, does not find it difficult to park around his row house on 30th Street.
"I find parking for the most part, the most difficult time to find spots is around 10 p.m. ... The further off campus you get, the less parking problems you have," he said.
