Laziness is Not a Handicap

Adrianna Alvarez

Opinions Editor

Eighty tickets were dis­pensed for illegally parking in handicap spots on campus last semester. LIU Post has strict rules and regulations regarding this kind of violation.

On September 24, 2012, Dr. Paul Forestell, LIU Post provost, and Paul Rapess, the director of Public Safety, issued an email to the campus community that stated, “The provision of des­ignated parking spaces at Long Island University for individu­als with disabilities is not just a civic responsibility, but a legal requirement.”

According to the Rehabilita­tion Act of 1973, individuals with disabilities have rights to barrier free access. Additionally, LIU must provide reasonable altera­tions and accommodations for those with disabilities. According to the school website, there are currently about 129 handicap parking spots.

Parking in a handicap space without the appropriate docu­mentation is against the law. All students must register their vehicle with Public Safety. Ac­cording to Public Safety, register­ing with the department allows it to keep track of where additional handicap spaces could be needed.

This could also help elimi­nate illegal usage of borrowed handicap permits, which is when individuals use someone else’s handicap tag. Students who are not registered to park in handicap areas will have the illegal handi­cap tags removed and it will be reported to the Department of Motor Vehicles, which will then give additional monetary fines. The campus also reserves the right to tow an illegally parked vehicle.

“The Parking fine [on cam­pus] is $60 and the towing fee is $120, but a storage fee can be charged if the car is left over­night,” said Rapess. “Those fees are between the towing company and the individual owner of the vehicle,” he added.

“I think parking illegally in handicap [spots] is wrong, worse than parking illegally anywhere else on campus. There should be harsh penalties,” said junior Public Relations major, Devan Farrell.

Senior Music Education major, Alessandra Holmes, ex­pressed her thoughts on the issue and explained what she would do if she witnessed someone abus­ing the parking space. “It’s just terrible. Especially when I see someone without a sticker on the car. I think it’s ridiculous. It’s like ‘what are you doing?’ If I were to see it, I probably would say, ‘Why are you parking in an illegal spot that you know your not supposed to be parking in?’ Think of all the others who really need that spot and you don’t. It’s not going to kill you if you have to walk a little bit longer.”

Students who are temporar­ily disabled can apply for a tem­porary parking permit through Student Health and Services, located in Pell Hall. This pass is not for handicap spots, but does allow you to park in faculty/staff parking areas, which are closer to the academic buildings.

You can learn more about handicap parking rules by visit­ing Public Safety’s link on the LIU website. If you see or know of someone who is abusing the use of handicap parking, you are encouraged to report it at 516-299-2214.