Derek Poarch, committee chairman and DPS director, said the group should not feel limited in its recommendations. "We shouldn't let ourselves be narrowed," he said.
But Poarch said UNC's transportation system could face a $38 million debt because of the $71 million dollars it will cost to build new parking decks in the Ramshead parking lot, the Bell Tower parking lot and two or three more various parking lots.
To balance the budget, Poarch proposed the possibility of instituting a night parking plan, which would charge fees to park after 5 p.m.
But some ACT members said it would be unfair to charge drivers who return to campus at night. "It is only fair to spread the costs of the debt, but I don't want to see any burden placed on anybody who is coming back to campus," said Tommy Griffin, Employee Forum chairman.
Sue Estroff, Faculty Council chairwoman, also said students, faculty and staff should not be charged as much money for after-hours parking as people not affiliated with the campus.
Colin Christian, the graduate student representative on ACT, said DPS should consider Estroff's proposal. "I think that philosophy makes a lot of sense."
ACT members also supported the use of a sliding scale for the price charged for day parking permits. "There is strong sentiment among the faculty because it is one of the few ways to redistribute the income," Estroff said.
Although all ACT members supported the use of a sliding scale for parking permits, they could not agree on how income would determine the amount one would pay for permits. They agreed to discuss the matter at a future meeting.
The attendees also discussed the philosophy of combining the budget for both the parking and transit systems.
