Every morning at around 8:30 a.m., the State Street Parking Lot, home to cars of students and teachers alike, transforms from a quiet concrete slab into a bustling center for all users to begin their day on campus. As a unique lot for both students and teachers, the lot has continued a legacy of offering students a way to add more flexibility to their day-to-day lives. 

For students participating in theatre, athletics, or other after school commitments, having parents drive or taking the bus isn’t always an ideal option. Westridge’s Campus Safety and Security Manager Mr. Hector Martinez said, “Especially in the later years of high school, the load on [students] is going to be extremely complex. …it’s just a lot of moving parts. And so we want to respect that. We want to honor that.”

Though the State Street Lot offers students flexibility, it unfortunately isn’t available to all of the students hoping to use its opportunity, as spots are assigned on a first-come, first-served basis. “At the moment, there [are] a handful of students who have not received a spot,” said Mr. Martinez.

Maddie M. ’26, the owner of a self-proclaimed “large” car, appreciates having a spot this year but found other ways to keep this flexibility in their schedule before being assigned a spot. “Was I annoyed last year when I applied for a parking spot and didn’t get it? Yeah, but I think it was okay that I didn’t have one. I think I figured it out. I definitely didn’t park on Arlington [Drive] twice a week, you know, and then walk to school because it was convenient and I had things to go to after school,” they said. 

Although parking on Arlington Drive is not technically allowed by Westridge, students have been resourceful in seeking alternatives, as some students have not been assigned spots, and sophomores with permits or licenses are ineligible for spots.

Another unnamed upperclassman, who has been in a few accidents since the year began, agreed that parking on surface streets near the school would be a good way to reduce the congestion in the lot and blamed a lack of student driving skills for the accident-prone environment in the lot. Still, she recognized that progress was being made; “I feel like the drivers started bad[ly] at the beginning of the year, but they’ve gotten better,” she said.

Ms. Kara Ramirez, Middle School English Teacher and parking lot user, also utilizes surface streets when unable to get a spot, as faculty spaces are unassigned. “I do feel the spaces are rather tight…so what’s great is that we do have alternatives, and sometimes I just park on Arlington as a result of the just busyness in [the] State Street [Lot],” she said. “The time I feel it’s most dangerous is often after school when parents or visitors or other families are coming [and]…are trying to navigate the parking lot.”

Mr. Martinez also recognizes the prevalence of accidents inside the State Street Lot. “There have been a handful of accidents within this academic school year,” he said.

One reason for this statistic, brought up by all students interviewed, was the size of the State Street Lot spots. 

While the average size of a parking space in the United States is around 9’x18’, the regular State Street Lot spaces are around two feet less wide, being measured as 7’x17’10”. The compact spaces, which make up one out of the four rows of the lot and are primarily assigned to students, measure up another full foot less wide at 6’x12’9”, almost 90 square feet smaller than the national average. 

Joovy C. ’27 drives a Toyota Crown, which measures up to around 6 feet wide and 16 feet long. Though this technically fits inside her regular-sized space, it leaves mere inches on either side of her car, requiring extra time and effort to line her car up perfectly. “Well, my car touches both lines, and it also extends dangerously past where the [spot] actually ends. And I’m fully backed into a bush. The back of my car is inside a bush right now, and it still extends past,” she said.

Joovy also noticed that some of her friends with similarly sized cars were assigned to compact spaces. Though the market for compact cars has begun to surge because of the low prices associated with less room, they still only make up around 20% of car sales. Mr. Martinez added that the compact spots are a “topic of conversation” within his team. “We do acknowledge that parking is scarce, and so we want to try and figure out what the best solution is, while keeping in mind the average size of the common car and the fact that it does or does not fit into a compact spot,” he said.

Though there is a double-lined border in between the spaces, as can be seen in the photos, there is still sometimes not enough room to safely exit a car and remove all belongings. “Even in the non-compact spaces, getting all my school bags out of the back…it’s hard to open the door,” said Ms. Ramirez.

With these smaller-than-optimal spots, accidents have become commonplace in the State Street Lot. “I literally witnessed two cars bumping into each other… someone was backing out, and then the other person was backing out…I literally stood there watching,” said a senior. “I think this mainly has to do with how our parking lot is just so small, and it’s just so annoying that it’s really hard to back out,” she added.

“On the first day of school in 11th grade, I remember one of my friends going up to another friend, and being like, ‘hi, I think I hit your car’…it’s just what happens,” said Maddie.

Layla R. ’27 agreed that she is afraid of car accidents in the lot because of their high possibility. “I’ve never seen or been in an accident there, but it seems like it’s bound to happen, just because it’s low visibility and stuff,” she said.

Ms. Ramirez got into an accident in the lot in 2024 during an atypical week, and although she believes herself to be at fault, she noticed that the sizing of the spaces played a part in her collision. “I think this space was so small, and [the other person] had a larger SUV, and although my car wasn’t as large, I just don’t think the spaces allow for enough wiggle room,” she said.

Maddie also mentioned feeling anxious about the stressful scenario that the undersized lot provided. “I’ve hit cars before. I had one very stressful minute where I had wedged myself into a spot that I didn’t trust myself to get out of, because I couldn’t go forward, and I was crooked…I couldn’t go forward, I couldn’t go backward, and I basically had to, and I was panicking, crying,” they said.

Even though the current parking lot does not provide enough spaces for the number of students requesting them, some students are willing to prioritize room over the amount of spaces. “Please give me an actual, normal-size parking space,” said Joovy.