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According to the Chair of the North Campus Parking Deck Building Committee, Rosalind Meyers, Associate Vice President of Auxiliary Services, "the design of the deck will set the standard for future decks."
The plans are forecasted to be an improvement over the current decks because the plans call for an aesthetically-pleasing deck.
From the outside, the deck will look like an occupied building, rather than a parking deck. It will also be architecturally consistent with the Biotechnology Environmental Molecular Building, also referred to as the BEM Complex, being constructed near the future parking deck.
Tech has borrowed $10 million for the building of the deck. The initial plans include 1,000 parking spaces at the standard rate of $10,000 per space. The loan will be paid back from parking revenue.
The deck will displace people parking in the current surface lot located on the building site, but it is believed that it will eventually improve the parking situation. The lot will serve the BEM building, but the numbers of new spaces required is believed to be well under the number of new spaces available. The deck may also have provisions for visitor parking, general office space, campus police offices, and a parking and transportation office. An architect has already been chosen, but has not been approved by the Board of Regents. The construction is expected to begin sometime next June.
According to Meyers, "everyone is anxious to get this [project] started."
The planning for the new parking deck is not the only parking change that has taken place during the past year. Under the guidance of director John Nolte, several of the parking lots on campus have been redesignated. Additionally, gated lots are planned for installation by the beginning of Fall.