From students to professors to faculty members, there is one topic of conversation that seems to be extremely popular for all members of the Grand Valley State University community: parking.

Parking services has sold 10,400 parking passes to students for this semester. Traditional parking prices increased $10 per semester and $3 on the parking lot J-commuter permit per semester.

With record high enrollment numbers this year, parking services is working to allow for maximum student parking availability for those who have purchased a pass.

“In an effort to make room, active enforcement is taking place for those opting to park on campus without a valid parking permit,” Lisa Garringer said.

If students do receive a parking ticket, they can pay at a transaction window on either campus, online using the website www.gvsu.edu/parking, pay at the dropbox in front of Public Safety, or pay by phone.

However, some students that bought parking passes are already fed up with how difficult it is to find parking spots in time to get to their classes.

For the first time, students at GVSU will be able to sell back previously purchased parking passes for the fall 2015 semester for a full refund. Students must present their student IDs for the money to be returned to each student’s account.

“Students have always had the opportunity to return their permits up until the fifth day of the semester for a 100 percent refund, as we follow the tuition refund schedule,” said Lisa Garringer of parking services operations. “However, this year, the decision was made to continue to offer 100 percent during the time period traditionally offered at 75 percent.”

Students who park on campus may be struggling for space right now, but university personnel remain hopeful about increased parking availability.

“It’s typical for the lots on the Allendale Campus to be fuller during the first couple of weeks of classes,” said Jim Bachmeier, vice president for finance and administration, in a recent email sent out to students. “While this fall has been more challenging than previous opening weeks, we’re confident spaces will become more available.”

In order to keep up with the rapid growth of GVSU, there are several construction projects going on around campus. Due to these developments, there are several changes regarding parking that students, faculty and community members should be aware of to avoid receiving a parking violation.

Allendale Campus:

1. Adjunct faculty holding fall contracts will receive a white window decal that will be valid until Dec. 31.

2. Lot D3 is now reserved for faculty and staff

3. Lot F and the northeast portion of lot G are now reserved for faculty and staff

4. There will be new signs designed to help guests and visitors find short-term parking

5. The meters that were previously located in the northeast section of lot G have been removed. A faculty/staff permit will now be required in this area.

6. The visitor lot at the Marketplace is a short-term park to pay lot only that will charge 50 cents for 15 minutes of parking. Drivers can pay with cash, credit and the Parkmobile application for up to two hours at a time. This lot will be enforced 24/7.

7. A section of lot D1 is being used for construction staging of the lot reserved for disability parking.

8. Lot Z requires a faculty/staff permit or student commuter (red) permit.

Pew Campus:

1. There is a new lot for tenant and faculty/staff parking with metered visitor spaces available. This lot replaced the Lafayette lot which is now owned by Spectrum Health.

2. At the Eberhard Center, faculty/staff reserved spaces are available for two hours. Visitors can park and pay at meters or by displaying a visitor permit. Gate arms have been removed and parking is actively enforced.

The university and parking services encourage students to ride the bus free of charge to the Allendale and Pew campuses. They also want to make students aware that there are often parking spaces available in the west end of lot H and there are always spaces available in lot J. Another tip to find parking is to enter campus from the west on either West Campus Drive or Pierce Street and search for available spots from the back to the front of campus.

“You will actually save time by parking quickly and walking farther than by searching for a space in a lot you consider to be more convenient,” Bachmeier said in the released email.