CSUN SPACE RACE RAGES AS STUDENTS BATTLE FOR PARKING; QUAKE-LEVELED LOT UNREPLACED.

Byline: Sharline Chiang Daily News Staff Writer

Every morning, CSUN students grapple for the best but scarcest parking spots - the ones near classrooms.

Competition is so fierce that students park their cars and wait for spots to open, sometimes waiting right through their classes. Or they trail students walking to their cars, offering them a lift in exchange for nabbing their prized spot.

No wonder that as California State University, Northridge, forges ahead with plans to expand the campus, add buildings and build a sports stadium, students are worrying that parking will shrink further.

``People are really frustrated with parking,'' said Brad Marsh, president of CSUN Associated Students. ``They'll get a little angry. People honk their cars; people get out of their cars. It's pretty scary.''

Like at many college campuses, parking at CSUN is a sore subject. But a variety of circumstances have made the crunch worse.

The 1994 Northridge Earthquake destroyed a 2,500-car parking deck on the main campus, and temporary classrooms and offices displaced other precious parking spots. Even with new parking lots on its North Campus, CSUN is down 1,000 spaces since the quake.

Instead of replacing the parking deck, administrators used relief funds to add a new lot on the North Campus and a shuttle. But because most students remain reluctant to take the time to use the shuttle and cheaper parking lot, the remedies have not caught on.

Enrollment is growing on a campus where 90 percent of its 27,500 students commute daily.

Tensions between those vying for spaces often run high - with losers engaging in profanity-laced shouting matches and vandalism, students say.

According to campus police, winners have returned to find their taillights and side mirrors smashed, windshield wipers broken and paint jobs ``keyed,'' but officers discount those acts as random and infrequent. About 20 incidents of violence and vandalism related to parking were reported last year, CSUN police Lt. Michael Sugar said.

Students admit they sacrifice common sense and time for the luxury of a convenient parking spot. They'll wait and wait and wait for a spot in a close-by lot, rather than park immediately in lots on the perimeter of campus.

On a recent weekday, Hilary Wasserman waited, parked in an aisle for a prime spot so she could make it to her job as a child-care counselor right after class.

``I've been waiting here for an hour,'' said Wasserman, 24, of Chatsworth as she idled in the popular Lot B. ``I need to get out of here right away.''

Gina Nguyen, 20, of North Hills was reading a book on anthropology, parked in her white Toyota Celica. She was already half an hour late for class.

Meanwhile, in Lot A, a five-minute walk away, about 15 spots remained open. But Nguyen wasn't about to budge.

``I'm used to parking here,'' she said with a shrug. ``I don't know why. If I find trouble parking, I just ask my friends to take notes.''

Instead of replacing the quake-damaged parking deck, CSUN used part of the $21.5 million in Federal Emergency Management Agency relief funds it received to add a 3,200-car lot on the North Campus and a shuttle system.

Remaining funds for the deck have been used to build other structures, campus officials said. But details on how the money was spent are unavailable. CSUN administrators in charge of FEMA funds did not return calls.

Lot T on the North Campus accounts for 32 percent of CSUN's 10,505 spaces and 45 percent of the 7,570 student-designated spaces. But the shuttle has not caught on.

In Lot T's northern section, near Devonshire Street and Zelzah Avenue, only 30 to 40 of 2,300 spaces are filled each day. The southern section, at Lassen Street and Lindley Avenue, parks 500 cars daily.

``If you know where you can find parking, you'll adjust your schedule,'' said Edward C. Ball, associate director of CSUN's Department of Public Safety, who is in charge of parking services and transportation.

But some students say the shuttle is a poor excuse.

``The administrators need to understand this is a commuter school. Students are coming in and then they have to go to work,'' said student Nina Weston, a senior and campus newspaper reporter.

``Administrators don't care,'' she added. ``They can park wherever they want.''

But Robyn Kimmel, 20, a sophomore from Glendale, prefers the shuttle. Its buses come with cushy, plush seats, and an average ride takes about 15 minutes.

And it cost less. A North Campus parking pass is $40 a semester, compared to the main campus's $63 fee.

``It's cheaper. It's easier to get to class,'' Kimmel said.

The master plan, now under revision, sets aside space for three parking decks around the campus, but so far college officials say there is no money to build even one.

``We really don't have a parking garage in our capital program. We really don't have the funds,'' said Tom Tindall, CSUN's director of facilities planning. ``Our intention is to rely on our surface area, and we think that is adequate.''

CAPTION(S):

2 Photos

PHOTO (1) Parking Lot A at CSUN is nearly full at 8:40 a.m. on a recent school day.

(2) The paved path that led to a 2,500-car parking deck on the main campus that was leveled by the quake now leads to an empty field.

Bob Halvorsen/Daily News