A Student Publication of Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, CA

SACMedia

A Student Publication of Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, CA

SACMedia

A Student Publication of Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut, CA

SACMedia

Between Lines: Looking Into Parking Lot Incidents

While Lot B has the most incidents, parking issues plague all of Mt. SAC’s lots
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Parking lot B at the Mt.SAC campus. Photo credit: Lauren Berny/ SAC.Media

Parked cars at Mt. SAC have seen better days.

There have been 54 incidents since Jan. 10, 2018 involving the parking lots throughout campus, and only one police report on the crime log did not specify the location.

Based on where students have filed incident reports, the three lots with the most problems are lots B, H and D with over 10 incidents each.

The other lots have four incidents or less.

The type of incidents include hit and runs, vandalism, theft, stolen vehicles, drugs, violence and object throwing. The remaining incident, with the unspecified location, regarded an unauthorized handicap placard.

Cars are more likely to be damaged in a hit and run, as 29 incidents of the 54 reports, and are then likely to be vandalized or broken into with two instances of a stolen car and one instance of a stolen motorcycle.

The parking situation at Mt. SAC is limited and costly at $4 a day if a student does not buy an intersession or semester permit. The intersession permits are $25 and the fall and spring semesters are $50, but $25 with the fee waiver.

The campus also has special parking zones where visitors may park for 10 or 30 minutes in designated green curb areas, and metered parking that costs 25 cents every 15 minutes at four hours maximum.

The parking permits are not valid in metered stalls, so students with a permit would still have to pay up to $4 at 25 cents a minute to use the space for four hours. Public Safety also has more information available on parking permits.

On Jan. 23, Public Safety Officer I David Quiroz was dispatched to lot W at 9:15 a.m. where a 2008 Toyota Camry was damaged in the right rear quarter bumper. The student declined to file a report with the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department.

On March 7, Public Safety Officer I Gerald Martinez was dispatched to a blue 2018 Toyota Corolla was struck in lot H2 with white paint transfer to the left rear bumper and left front bumper.

On March 14, Martinez was dispatched to H2 again for another hit and run from 10:20 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. A student’s 2005 black Nissan truck was dented in the left rear door and left side of the truck bed with white paint transfer. The report also states that the student noticed a white Ford Expedition parked in the stall next to him before her left but found no note or witnesses.

LASD filed a report in both instances for lot H.

While hit and runs are common, Quiroz also responded to a thrown substance at 10:20 a.m. on Dec. 4 of last year around lot G.

A female on campus who waited to pick up her sister, a student at Mt. SAC, at 9:45 a.m. in lot G when had a beverage can thrown at her car from an individual who was yelling at her in a Ford Escape, according to the female. Her windows were rolled up and the can did no damage and she later declined to file a report with LASD, but did add she would send a photo of the vehicle to Quiroz.

Two days later, Quiroz met up with the owner of the Ford Escape who said his brother was driving the vehicle on that day.

The brother then went to Campus Safety and offered his side of the incident on the date.

While denying throwing a beverage, the brother admitted to becoming angry and yelling at a female driver of a white Kia that stopped in the middle of the road to talk to a female on the side of the road. The brother said the female did not yield the road and that he waited before honking and yelling at them as he drove around them. He then said they proceeded to follow him and take photographs of his vehicle.

The brother was counseled and advised this report would be written after admitting to having “been in trouble before for similar behavior.”

While that is a snapshot into just a few of the issues found in the lots, lot B has had 15 incidents alone.

Lot B was increased to 1,700 spaces from 1,400 spaces. It reopened on Aug. 27 after construction had started on Aug. 2, and there have been 10 incidents following the restriping renovation.

Other parking lots, like lots R and S are planned to become parking structures following the lawsuit settlement over putting a parking structure on lot A.

Lots R and S were projected to have construction begin in March 2019 and were expected to be finished 14-18 months later, but all development is currently waiting for the Environmental Impact Report to be accepted by the board of trustees in June.

The next lot to be restriped is lot A, this summer, and after the parking structures on lots R and S are built, there may be a future structure near lot B far down the road.

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About the Contributor
Joshua Sanchez is the former Editor in Chief and News Editor of SAC.Media. He was previously the managing editor of LAHS' student newspaper, The Conqueror. A portfolio of his reporting work can be found at jdjoshsan.wordpress.com.

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