WDBJ7 Roanoke News and Weather NRV Lynchburg Danville | Have trouble parking at Virginia Tech?
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"We don't have the ability to build anymore surface lots in this area so rather than build out, we have to build up," says Steve Mouras, Director of Transportation, Campus Services.
The site of the future garage is already sectioned off and a little work has started.Virginia Tech is solving its parking problems by building upward.
Vehicles parked on top of each other at Virginia Tech...it won't just be a joke anymore for lack of spaces in the Perry Street and Prices Fork lots.
"We don't have the ability to build anymore surface lots in this area so rather than build out, we have to build up," says Steve Mouras, Director of Transportation, Campus Services.
The university is working to construct the school's first parking garage with 1,200 spaces.
It'll be off Prices Fork Road in the highest-demand parking area.
"It's the one that predominatly the students would wish to park in to access to all the access to the classrooms located behind us here," says Mouras.
Construction on the new parking garage is taking away about 700 spaces, but once it's complete, they'll get those back, plus an additional 800 spots.
"That's pretty much the only place to park if you're commuting," says student Joe Gruss.
The site of the future garage is already sectioned off and a little work has started, but students say short term it's just jamming them up.
Casey Clark leaves himself an hour to find a place.
"Well, before it wasn't great, but now you have to prepare completley because of people just driving over and over again looking for spots," says Clark.
Mouras says the university has built two other lots to make up for the spaces roped off for construction.
The garage is expected to be finished by late summer or early fall of next year.
Within ten years, Mouras says the school will probably add two more garages.
