This past school year and years before, the Sandpoint High School parking lot has been a topic of concern among students and teachers regarding its overcrowdedness.

The Sandpoint High School parking lot currently has a total of 323 spots. Of these 323 spots 135 are staff parking, and there are only 105 staff members at SHS today. This leaves an extra 30 spots not being used by staff members, that Sandpoint High students would find very helpful to use.

The excessive amount of staff spots and limited student parking, has raised concerns among students who have experienced the frustration with not being able to find a spot to park.

“Yes, [the parking lot is overcrowded] I think that there’s too many staff spots, mostly. I find it hard to find a place to park mostly at lunch,” Sophomore Madison McNall said.

Although some students believe that the parking lot is too crowded, there are also students who don’t find a problem with parking and find the system to work well.

“There is always empty parking in the overflow. I don’t really find it difficult to find parking spots,” junior Laneka Thompson said.

Staff member David Watkins, who monitors the parking lot, shared his views, stating that he doesn’t believe it is overcrowded and that there are plenty of spot available for students to park.

“The parking lot is not overcrowded, there are always some spots available.” He also shared, “What many students don’t known is that the lot behind the middle school is the overflow, and there are almost always spots available there.”

The parking lot behind the middle school may always have available spots, but does it then become an inconvenience for those students who have to walk the long distance just to go to school, or should more students take advantage of this open space?

Students who want to park in the parking lot have to purchase a parking pass which is priced at $25. At this price, students believe they should be able to park in a spot that is at a reasonable distance.

Also, students who lose their passes  must pay $15 to replace it, which is over half the price that the original pass costs. These fees have upset students who find it unfair that they are paying to possibly not have a spot to park, while members of the staff are able to park for free in the lot.

Some views of students and staff express a need for improvements made to the parking lot to make it more convenient and less stressful for those who are finding difficulties with it today.