A resolution presented by the Parking Study Committee was voted down at the final faculty senate meeting before the end of the semester.

The resolution stated that beginning in the fall semester 2012, faculty-only parking spaces should be designated in parking lots adjacent to all academic buildings from Monday through Thursday at no cost to faculty.

However, the topic will remain open for discussion.

According to UW-Whitewater Parking Services, as of Oct. 31, 2011, 845 faculty/staff purchased permits for $110 each and 2,023 commuter parking permits were also sold, while there are only about 1,182 parking spaces available in the main parking lots.

Prior to the vote, faculty supporting the resolution said although reserving parking spaces for faculty was a small gesture, it would be a way to give something back in response to mounting financial burdens imposed by the state.

UW-Whitewater would then join the four other UW System schools (UW-Eau Claire, UW-Platteville, UW-Oshkosh, and UW-River Falls) in having parking lots designated for faculty and staff only.

Those opposed said they felt the symbolic victory of reserved parking would be small in comparison to the goodwill lost with the student body by providing spaces at no cost to faculty. This would be especially true if the Board of Regents asks for a tuition increase in June, which might be as high as 5.5 percent.

It was proposed that the faculty revenue could be replaced by the unpaid parking fines accrued annually, but this would be an insufficient amount of revenue to cover the cost of parking, especially since those fees are often uncollected.

In its discussion with Whitewater Student Government, the Parking Study Committee was offered the solution of reducing the number or eliminating freshmen parking passes.

Without a consensus on the solution to the parking problem at UW-Whitewater currently, discussion will continue into the 2012-13 school year.