Due to the shortage of available parking spots, administrators sent out a survey during seminar on Friday, Aug. 28, for teachers to give to juniors and seniors in order to gather data regarding parking.

Over the summer, the administration rescinded a policy allowing students to choose their own assigned parking spots. Over 300 members of the senior class showed up on Tuesday, Aug. 4 to choose from roughly 660 available spots before the policy changed.

While the purpose of the data gathered from Friday’s survey has yet to be announced, school resource officer Mo Loridon said administrators are working to come up with a plan to accommodate more students in the parking lot as quickly as possible.

“We’re looking at, ‘What can we fix next week? What can we fix for next month?’ and then, ‘What can we fix for next year?’” Loridon said. “We do not have anything yet that we can talk about because everything’s still in the planning stage.”

In this planning stage, parking passes will no longer be issued. However, $5 parking tickets will still be issued and will increase by $5 increments with every parking violation. Approximately 40 parking tickets have already been issued this school year.

Many students like senior Olivia Reyes, have resorted to illegal parking in order to obtain a close spot to the school.

“I parked in staff because I have to be at work at 3:30 and if I park anywhere else I won’t get there in time,” Reyes said. “It’s kind of unfair that we keep getting all these tickets but [the parking spot shortage is] not really our problem, it’s [the administration’s].”

For students struggling to find parking, Loridon suggested alternative transportation and parking options.

“Students have to start using Monticello Trails … We can’t be afraid to walk an extra 100 feet to find a parking spot,” Loridon said. “If you don’t want to park at Monticello Trails, get here earlier. Or carpool. Call a friend. Mill Valley is not a big territory — I guarantee you 20 kids that go to Mill Valley live in each little neighborhood and could give people rides to school.”

Reyes said close parking should be an upperclassman privilege and suggested her own solution to the problem.

“I don’t think freshmen and sophomores should be able to drive, but if they do, they should have to park at the middle school,” Reyes said. “I think seniors should be guaranteed a parking spot.”

The future of the parking lot is still uncertain, but the student body should expect a decision soon.

“Well, we can’t do anything until we get all the results back from the surveys,” Loridon said. “But, the idea is to do something sooner than later.”