Oldham: Constructing A Parking Garage Still A Priority

Tennessee Tech President Phil Oldham said constructing a parking garage on campus is still a high priority.

Oldham said the biggest question is the financial aspect since the university would have to fund the project.

“We want to make sure that we don’t overburden students with additional fees, so we are trying to find the best way to do that so that it serves our needs, the student’s needs but doesn’t put undue financial burden on students either,” Oldham said.

Oldham said the university has been evaluating sites for the garage. One of those being Wings Up Way on the north side of Ray Morris Hall. Oldham said he hopes that the project will move forward in the not so distant future.

“University campuses don’t receive any funding from the state to assist with parking, so all of that has to be self-financed through student fees or other means of funding that would be available,” Oldham said. “The cost associated with a parking garage are fairly significant.”

The garage project was approved by the university’s Board of Trustees in December of last year. It was then added to the university’s project list for this year. The plans at the time called for 412 parking spaces.