Fifth Street improvements include parking changes near WVC

Wenatchee Valley College students and staff will no longer be able to park on Fifth Street beginning fall quarter.

As part of the City of Wenatchee’s master plan to enhance pedestrian and bicycle safety on Fifth Street, on-street parking is being eliminated between Miller and Western Streets, and bicycle lanes are being added in both directions, along with islands near WVC, a center turn lane, three new crosswalks, pedestrian ramps and upgraded roadway lighting.

To accommodate the loss of on-street parking, 70 general permit and reserved parking spaces will be available in the new lot near the WVC Music and Art Center off of Fifth Street, and 16 new spaces behind Wells Hall. About 150 free parking spaces will continue to be available at the former music and art center on Ninth Street.

Parking is also available in the Smith Gym, Wells Hall, Brown Library and Sexton Hall lots, which require permits. On-street parking is still available along Ninth Street.

Student parking permits cost $25 per quarter and can be purchased at the cashiers office in Wenatchi Hall. Daily permits cost $2 a day and are available at machines in the Smith Gym, Brown Library, Sexton Hall, and Music and Art Center lots. The permit machines were upgraded recently to accept coins, bills and debit/credit cards.

A parking lot study completed in April 2011 showed that a minimum of 124 spaces are open during peak hours (10 a.m. to 1 p.m.), with an average of 200 empty spaces, mostly in the upper Smith Gym lots near the tennis courts and soccer fields.

WVC students and staff are also encouraged to use the Link bus service. Link offers free service to those with current WVC student ID cards. Students enrolled in six or more college-equivalent credits may obtain ID cards from the student programs office in Van Tassell Center.

A new partnership between Link and WVC allows all full- and part-time Wenatchee campus employees to obtain a Link eCO Pass, a pre-paid public transit program that allows staff to ride the Link bus for free. Link will be available in Van Tassell Center on the Wenatchee campus on Sept. 20 and 21 from 8 to 10 a.m. and 1 to 3 p.m. for those employees who would like to get their transit pass and to learn more information about bus routes and schedules.

The City of Wenatchee estimates a substantial completion of the Fifth Street safety improvement project by Sept. 24, the day that fall-quarter classes begin at WVC.