TTU Has Not Made Definitive Decision On New Parking Garage

Tennessee Tech President Phil Oldham said the university has not made a definitive decision on building a new parking garage.

Oldham made the report to the Putnam County Joint Economic and Community Development Board Tuesday.

“We’d love to have one on campus,” Oldham said. “We would actually love to have more than one on campus, but the cost of the parking garage is pretty substantial relative to the utilization, so we’re still sort of in that gray zone.”

The garage project was estimated to cost some $13.9 million when approved by the university’s Board of Trustees in December of last year. It would include 412 spaces to be located on Wings Up Way on the north side of Ray Morris Hall. Oldham said the university does have interest, but the parking would not be absolutely necessary.

“We’ve got enough surface real estate to do surface parking,” Oldham said. “It’s just not as convenient as everybody would like it to be. It sort of comes down to how much you are willing to pay for the convenience of more dense parking.”

Oldham said the parking development is a part of the university’s master plan. As a disclosed project, the cost would need to be covered by the university, Oldham said.

“There are some capital projects that the state helps us fund, but there are other things that we have to totally fund ourselves,” Oldham said. “Parking, student housing, athletic facilities, those type of things we have to self-finance.”