Those who have been reading the emails from David Chick, the Bates Parking Coordinator, know that Winter Parking restrictions have been set on the streets of Lewiston. This usually begins what was described last year as a “mad scramble” and “survivor but with snow and cars” — but don’t worry. This article is here to give you a breakdown of how to not get a parking ticket.
There already have been articles written about the student concern of the cars to campus spots ratio but not many on where student parking is available. There is a comprehensive list of where spots can be found on the Bates Websitebut it can be difficult to find.
Only Student Lots:
- Merrill Parking Lot: There is the largest of the parking lots behind Merrill Gym. It is usually the safest option to start if your usual spot isn’t open. There are other, less known, parking spots between Leahey Field and the Cutten Maintenance Center.
- Village Parking Lot: There is the parking lot behind the three buildings called the Village for short, but which are actually Moody House, Benjamin Mays Center, and the Rzasa House.
- Chu Lot: There is a lot behind Chu, although it can be rather competitive for spots as the parking lot behind Kalperis Hall is only for faculty and staff.
- John Bertram Hall: There is a lot outside of JB hall; however, this lot is on the smaller side than others and usually fills up fast.
- Wood Street Lots: There are three lots on Wood Street which together are a good middle resort for finding a parking spot. Their distance to Frye Street makes it convenient for residents of any of the houses during the wintertime street parking bans.
That’s it. Yes, Bates — the school of nearly 2,000 students — only has five parking areas for students. This is another issue in itself. However, don’t fear. The faculty spots are only in use from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. so outside of business hours, as signage states, these spots are usable. For weekends, the hours are from 5 p.m. on Friday to 7 a.m. on Monday. However, on North Bardwell Street (the street outside of Adams and Smith Halls) parking isn’t permitted from midnight to 6 a.m. If you do leave your car here, it can result in a $100 fine.
During city-declared street parking bans, Campus Safety knows that there are not enough spots for cars. Their website recommends that students use the Lewiston public parking garages. If you want to hear more about this alternative, you can read more here under “Declared snow emergency parking ban on City streets.”
Last year, I had parking issues. I would get back from work at 11 p.m. and circle the campus for sometimes an hour before crying and surrendering to the possibility of a ticket by parking in the visitor spots. But, through trial and error, I learned which streets would be tactically beneficial to parking and I believe that you can too.
A more comprehensive list detailing the spots and their locations can be found on the Bates website here.
