Six months after Eastern Michigan University’s Department of Public Safety took over management of campus parking, the results are visible in freshly repaved lots and new reserved space-signage.
DPS assumed responsibility for what is now called Eagle Parking January 30, ending a long-standing arrangement in which the university’s parking operations were run by an outside contractor, LAZ. EMU Police Chief Matt Lige said the transition team has been smaller than the staff LAZ maintained, but more efficient; accomplishing in six months what he called a significant amount of foundational work, while acknowledging there is still more to do.
This handoff wasn’t just administrative. For over a decade, frustrated students, staff and visitors who ran into parking problems with LAZ called DPS directly, even though the department had no authority over parking decisions at the time.
“My office was often the subject of anger,” Lige said. “It’s nice [now] that all parking related issues fall under the umbrella. I’m ultimately responsible for it. But the feedback, the collaboration, the conversations that are happening, are very productive."
Lige said the department’s goals will start with regaining the trust of students and community.
“It affects the image," Lige said of the earlier system's shortcomings. "It did more damage than it was productive."
Reduced parking cost
Lige said, in addition, that the parking prices are being reduced.
"We reduced the standard commuter and resident parking permits 5% from $223 to $210. 5% may not seem like a lot, but 5% reduction is significant in the scheme of things," Lige said.
Lige also said the university has created a more affordable option.
"We created an option called the Green Lot option, which is one of our parking lots right here," Lige said, "We're offering that as a parking option for commuters or resident students for $175. You park in this lot; that is the only lot you can park in."
Lige said that while the Green Lot may be a hike from main campus, its cost, arguably, outweighs the extra time you'll spend walking.
"Yes, you have got a little bit of a walk, but you get a substantially reduced permit cost," he said.
Parking permits can be purchased online.
Improved infrastructure
A major piece of the recent work has been physical: resurfacing, regrading and re-striping lots across campus, some of which hadn’t been updated in years. Winter salting and plowing gradually wears paint off asphalt, and after enough seasons, faded lines make it difficult to tell where a parking space is.
One of the largest initiatives, Chief Lige said, covered roughly 1,400 spaces in a single lot — splitting between residential and commuter parking. Crosswalks in several areas have been redone as well. DPS also did away with the coin-operated meters in favor of QR-code payment.
Students will now be able to reserve designated parking lots. This is something that hasn’t be an opportunity at EMU in the past.
Several lots, Chief Lige said, have been reclassified based on who uses them most. A lot near Downing Hall that was previously split between staff and commuter parking has been converted into a dedicated commuter lot after feedback from residents. A separate lot, once shared by staff and commuters, has been repurposed to exclusively commuters.
"When you weigh who benefits the most from it ... the commuters need the space," Chief Lige said.
New signage and reclassified lots are expected to be completed before students return this fall. DPS says it will continue evaluating the parking situation as the transition continues.
