Around 7 o’clock every morning, students pull into the parking lot for the school day only to realize at 2:30 p.m. that they parked over the lines or taken up more than one spot.

GHS has a serious problem with its parking lot, even neglecting the cracks and pothole-ridden areas. The inability to see the lines leads to students cutting some lanes of the parking lot to far fewer spots available. The dated lines paired with some less-than-pleasant weather make the situation even worse so drivers parking inside the lines is nearly impossible.

The easiest fix for this problem would be simply repainting the parking lot lines. For a parking lot the size of ours, it would cost $3,000-$6,000, according to NVM Paintings’ rates. This price could be offset by the parking fees we pay. However, the time to paint has passed since the paint would need a warm week to dry properly, so the earliest we could hope for the repaint is this summer.

Another slightly less conventional and more expensive fix to lot problems would be new lighting. This fix would take a lot more time and money, yet it could not only provide a better looking parking lot but also better visibility for those leaving at night after events. Installing lights could be upwards of $10,000, according to NUER lighting charging $2,000 per light pole and may still require a repaint, but the new look may be worth it in the long run.

The final solution that comes to mind is the least likely in pushing our school start time back. A later start would allow for better visibility and eliminate the need to repaint. While this change would be drastic and in the long run probably cost the school more money, it is fun to dream about it.

While the parking lot fix could be pricey, we have numerous options that all vary in price and would all benefit student life as well as the appearance of our school.