Campus Security Cracks Down on Caldwell Parking

No parking sign on Caldwell Avenue, Photo by Nick Rampe

Campus Security continues to issue warnings to illegally parked cars on Caldwell Avenue. 

The Nashville Department of Transportation issued parking citations to Belmont students’ cars on the residential side of Caldwell Avenue on Oct. 18. 

After NDOT ticketed the cars, Campus Security placed typed notes on the windshields of cars parked on Caldwell Avenue, most recently on Thursday. 

The notes asked students to “help us maintain good relationships with our neighbors” by parking in one of the parking garages on campus. 

Taylor Gray, a Campus Security officer, said that Belmont students need to be aware of the homes surrounding campus and the people who live there. 

“We get a lot of calls from neighbors where students have blocked their driveway,” said Gray. 

Gray also said parking on both sides of Caldwell Avenue makes the street too narrow, causing traffic issues for drivers going in both directions. 

“I don’t think they enforce ticketing there enough… it’s just really annoying,” said junior Juan Segura. 

The limited space also led to minor damage to parked cars. 

“We've had one student... that had their mirror clipped because they were parked in the street, and somebody actually hit the side of their vehicle and took their mirror off,” said Gray. 

But the concern goes beyond minor accidents. The narrow roadway can also slow down emergency vehicles, creating a serious safety risk. 

Students who registered their car on campus are assigned to garages close to their residence halls. However, some students think there’s not enough room for everyone who wants to park there. 

“There's just not enough parking… Belmont needs more space in general,” said senior student Lauren Keeton. 

While Keeton acknowledged the traffic issues caused by parking on Caldwell Avenue, she said she thinks that parking on both sides should be legal because of the problem of space. 

“As long as you're not parking in front of somebody's driveway, or in front of fire hydrants, I don't think it should matter, because where else are you supposed to park?” 

Gray recommended using the Curb or South garages, where there are usually more open spaces, and said there is enough parking on campus for everyone. 

“We would just ask that people park on campus, in a garage, if possible,” said Gray. 

NDOT did not reply to a request for comment.

This article was written by Olivia Abernathy