Western Connecticut State University, acting by virtue of powers vested by the Board of Trustees through Section 10a-92 of the Connecticut General Statutes and the Connecticut State Traffic Commission, establishes traffic and parking rules, regulations, and fines to control the use of all motor vehicles on university property.

These rules and regulations facilitate control of vehicle parking and traffic on campus and are legally enforceable by the officers of the university police department, as provided in Section 10a-142 of the Connecticut General Statutes. In addition, all applicable statutes of the motor vehicle section of the Connecticut General Statutes apply to all owners and/or operators of motor vehicles on university property.

The University reserves the right to amend, supplement, revise, alter, rescind, or add to these rules and regulations.

Western Connecticut State University assumes no responsibility for the care and/or protection of a vehicle or its contents at any time while it is parked or operated on campus. For protection, vehicles should be properly secured at all times.

Parking on WCSU property is only available to students, faculty, staff and university visitors.  Public parking is not permitted on either of our campuses.

Parking Permits

Every university employee who parks a motor vehicle on university property must obtain and display a permit.

Any questions or problems, please contact Monica Allen at allenme@wcsu.edu or Rick Montefusco at montefuscor@wcsu.edu.

For staff and faculty, parking permits are assigned to an individual and are not transferrable. Fines associated with the permit are the responsibility of the permit holder. Lost or stolen permits should be immediately reported to the University Police. There is a $10.00 replacement fee to obtain a new permit.

The permanent faculty/staff hangtags do not have an expiration date, and you will be required to turn your permit into the police department upon termination of employment with the University.

Adjunct faculty/part-time staff will receive hangtags that expire at the end of each semester. They will be mailed out via interoffice mail starting August 1st. Full time faculty/staff hangtags do not expire. You need to contact the parking office if you need to replace a lost/stolen hangtag.

Violation of this policy may result in towing and/or loss of parking privileges.

Traffic and Parking Regulations

Posted speed limits will be enforced. Where no limit is posted, speed will be limited to that which is reasonable and proper for existing traffic and weather conditions and for surface conditions on roads and in parking lots.

Pedestrians shall have the right of way at all times on university property.

Visitor parking is only allowed in the Old Main Visitor Parking Lot, the front lot at University Hall and on the Westside Campus on University Boulevard and at the entrance to the Faculty/Staff Lot at the WSCB. Students, staff and faculty are not permitted to park in designated visitor parking areas.

Faculty and staff should park in designated faculty/staff lots. All vehicles parked on campus shall be within designated parking spaces as marked.

Parking is prohibited in the following areas: in driveways, on walkways and grassed areas, within yellow-lined areas, in service and loading areas or any area where official signs or markings indicate Restricted or No Parking.

Student parking is not permitted in any of the surface lots on Midtown at any time.

Overnight parking (11pm to 6am) is prohibited in any of the Midtown campus surface lots (i.e. the faculty/staff lot on Fifth Avenue; the White Hall/Fairfield Hall lot on White Street; University Hall lots, front and back; Haas Library Lot, the Visitors’ Lot at Old Main and the Newbury Hall lot off Roberts Avenue). Any vehicles parked in those lots during that time will be ticketed for overnight parking regardless of how long the vehicle was parked there. Midtown residents who have visitors should advise their guests to park in the White Street garage.

Overnight parking is available at the Midtown campus parking garage on White Street and the Centennial Hall Garage at Westside, on all levels except the top decks during the winter months.

The responsibility of finding a legal parking space rests with the motor vehicle operator. Lack of space is not considered a valid excuse for violation of these regulations. Parking on campus is limited and cannot be guaranteed.

The University reserves the right to tow any vehicle that is illegally parked. Owners of towed vehicles will be required to pay all costs involved in the removal, impounding, and storage of such vehicles. In addition to the impounding fees, a parking violation fine will be assessed.

After three or more parking violations, the violator may be called before the campus judicial board and/or lose his or her parking privileges on university property.

No person shall remove, destroy, or tamper with a parking violation notice which has been issued. No person shall use a fictitious or counterfeit permit or give false information in the application for a permit. No person shall fail to surrender to the University Police, upon demand, any Western Connecticut State University parking permit.

Staff, faculty, and students are responsible for informing their guests of the University’s parking regulations. Temporary and visitor permits may be obtained from the University Police Department on Midtown campus. Parking in the Old Main Visitor’s Lot is limited to one hour. If the visitor knows that they will be more than one hour, they must obtain a Temporary Visitor Pass from the Police Department on Roberts Avenue and place it on the dashboard of their vehicle.

No person shall destroy or in any way deface any sign or traffic control device.

Because of the high volume of vehicular and pedestrian traffic, standard traffic regulations and definitions, as enacted into the motor vehicle laws of the state of Connecticut, will be rigidly enforced on university property at all times. If necessary, violations of any rule or regulation noted in this document will be pursued by the University in the appropriate court of law.

Violation Fines and Appeals

Violators shall be fined for each violation indicated on the ticket. Fines range between $15.00, $20.00 and $25.00 (depending upon the violation) and must be paid upon issuance at the cashier’s office on the 1st floor of Old Main, Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Violators are also subject to state infractions (tickets, which carry a minimum fine of $75.00.)

Failure to pay parking fines may result in one or more of the following:

1. Denial of permission to register for classes

2. Withholding of academic transcript records or grades

3. Revocation of parking privileges on campus

4. Disciplinary action

5. Sanctions by the Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles

6. Legal action

Appeals of parking tickets issued shall be made to the Parking Violation Appeal Committee. Appeal forms must be completed and filed within 5 business days (Monday – Friday) from the date the ticket was issued. Forms may be picked up at the University Police Department.

If the Parking Violation Appeal Committee grants an appeal, the information will be forwarded to the Cashier’s Office, and the ticket will be voided. Anyone who appeals a ticket will be notified in writing of the committee’s decision. The Committee’s decision is final and cannot be amended once a decision has been made.

ADDITIONAL Parking Restrictions

Contractor Parking – Due to the limited parking available at Midtown, all persons issued a contractor parking permit that work on the Midtown Campus must park in the White Street Garage. If the need should arise to park elsewhere, specific authorization from the University Police Department must be obtained. Contractors are defined as those who work for an outside agency or vendor that provide services on campus or those independent persons working for limited time periods under outside contracts.

Monday through Thursday 7am to 5pm: Westside residents are highly encouraged to use the campus shuttle to Midtown due to limited parking.

WINTER WEATHER PARKING RESTRICTIONS

Snow parking ban restrictions – When a weather-related parking ban is in effect, in anticipation of snow or other severe weather, or due to snow and icy conditions, it may become necessary to clear all surface parking lots on both campuses (regardless of designation), the top decks of all campus parking garages, and all of Dr. James Roach Avenue, University Blvd, Grasso Drive, Centennial Drive and the O’Neil Access Road (Feldman Drive), in order to facilitate snow and/or ice removal operations.

Whenever it becomes necessary to institute such a parking ban, the University will make every reasonable effort to notify the community. This may include notices via electronic mail, social media posts and direct notification to residence hall directors (RDs). Notice of any weather-related parking bans or restrictions will be posted on the University alert page, and via the Everbridge Emergency Notification System. All members of the WCSU community have access to the Everbridge system and are encouraged to access the system here to ensure their preferred contact information is current.  

Parking during weather-related events will be provided as follows:

Midtown Campus – All Midtown Campus Residents must park in the White Street garage (except for the top deck).

Westside Campus – all Westside Campus Residents must park in the Centennial Garage (except for the top deck). Should additional parking be required, the University may release space in the Westside Commuter Lot, and this will be communicated to the residence hall directors (RDs).

SPECIAL EVENTS PARKING ON THE WESTSIDE CAMPUS

Parking priority will be given to faculty, staff and students attending classes at the Westside Classroom Building when special events are scheduled there.

When an event is scheduled on the Westside Campus and classes are in session, the Events and Conference Management (“ECM”) Director will notify the Office of the Ancell School of Business Dean in advance of the event. The Dean’s office will advise the ECM Director and the Police Department of the number of students and faculty/staff expected to attend.

The Police Department will then assist in identifying adequate parking in the Faculty and Staff Lot and the Commuter Lot for the period of time the event(s) is (are) in progress.

The Police Department may also place temporary signage in appropriate locations around campus to advise motorists of event parking.

The ECM Director will coordinate parking with the client and/or the appropriate university official and offer to arrange for transportation at the expense of the client.