University of North Carolina Athletics
Parking, Traffic & Construction
August 25, 2003 | Football
Aug. 25, 2003
Complete Fan's Guide in PDF Format
Complete Parking Map in PDF Format
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SUGGESTED ALTERNATE ROUTES:
From Raleigh/Cary/East of Chapel Hill: Take US 64 to Pittsboro and
get onto 15/501 North and come into Chapel Hill that direction. There is a
Park & Ride lot at Southern Village for fans wishing to ride the Tar Heel Express to the game. Using the Park & Ride lots will be the quickest way to Kenan Stadium.
Fans wishing to continue into campus should stay on 15/501 as it becomes Columbia Street and park in the ACC Lot off Mason Farm Road or the Cardinal Deck for public parking or locate their reserved lot from Columbia Street.
Rams Club Parking Q&A
With the area around Kenan Stadium undergoing significant construction, Rams Club football parking assignments underwent some changes this season. Rams Club Executive Vice President John Cherry answered some of the most common member questions about the changes.
Q: What sorts of parking changes are in store for the 2003 season?
John Cherry: The changes for 2003 football parking are quite significant in several areas. These changes actually began in earnest in 2002, when the Ehringhaus Field lot was lost due to construction staging for the Ramshead lot. Additionally, the Sonja Haynes Stone Black Cultural Center construction area resulted in the loss of 150 spaces from the Bell Tower lot. Most of these donors, from both lots, were moved to the Craige Parking Deck, which resulted in a significant change from their previous location.
Completion of the Ramshead lot is now expected after the 2004 football season, meaning that those 400+ spaces have to be relocated to either Ehringhaus Field, Ehringhaus Residence Dorm, or the Smith Center. Reassignments were made by the point system. The Ehringhaus Field lot is only available for 2003 and 2004, when it will revert to the use of the University's Exercise and Sport Science Department.
The Executive Committee of the Rams Club voted to return displaced Bell Tower permit holders to their lot for 2003, but change the lot to unassigned parking. Due to attrition and other changes, the staff agreed that this change was worth considering. Reviews of some numbered lots during the 2002 season, including the Bell Tower, indicated a significant number of empty spaces for the games with the highest attendance. The Parking Committee of the Rams Club made recommendations to the Executive Committee to make Bell Tower an unnumbered parking lot with spaces available on a first-come, first-serve basis with Craige Deck as the alternate lot should the Bell Tower lot fill for a high attendance game.
The committee will meet after the second home game of the 2003 season to review the results of this change.
Donors parking in the Carroll-Venable lot have seen the construction of a Science Complex replace their complete parking lot. They were moved to alternate parking lots in 2002, which included Craige Deck, Highway 54 and the Smith Center.
Traffic on Stadium Drive will be one-way for the 2003 football season in order to connect water lines to the Ramshead lot. This will result in the temporary loss of 30 spaces along the curb. These permit holders will be moved into alternate North Curb Stadium Drive spaces.
Q: Why are those changes necessary?
JC: All of these changes are a result of ongoing University construction. The Bond Issue that was passed in 2000 has resulted in significant construction projects across the campus, and parking has been affected in the majority of these cases. The Rams Club staff, the Parking Committee and the Executive Committee are examining both long and short-term solutions to this parking dilemma.
Q: When the present construction is completed, what will be the overall parking opportunities for Rams Club members?
JC: The Ramshead lot will not be available until the 2005 season, but will then give us an additional 250 spaces. This increase will be offset by the loss of the Ehringhaus Field lot after 2004. Construction of the Sonja Haynes Stone Black Cultural Center in the Bell Tower lot is expected to be completed for the 2004 season, but will result in a net loss of at least 60 spaces. With these changes and future construction projects taken into account, the issue of parking will be an ongoing discussion for the Rams Club.
Q: How can members go about improving their parking spots or getting additional spots?
JC: Just as vacancies in football seating are assigned by the point system, this is, and has been, the case for parking. If a donor maintains an appropriate annual membership, they can protect their location. However, when spaces are lost in a lot, or the lot is eliminated, each situation is reviewed individually to reach the most equitable solution.
Q: If a member has a question about their football parking, where should they direct their questions?
JC: The Rams Club staff is communicating with donors who have been affected by these parking changes. Every effort is being made to fully explain the changes and inform the donor of the future expectations for their parking. Donors are encouraged to contact the
Rams Club office by phone, e-mail or fax if they have individual questions about their parking.
