Too often, University of Houston’s Parking Enforcement is solely regarded as the distributor of parking tickets, but this department does far more than simply enforcing parking regulations. Its ultimate responsibility is assisting the campus community with any problems encountered in campus lots.

“If someone needs help, we’ll be there,” said Paul Lozano, manager of UH Parking Enforcement. “We’re able to offer jump starts, change flat tires, help unlock a car and do just about anything that does not require multiple tools. We’ll also help people find their cars if they don’t remember where they’re parked.”

Parking Enforcement is managed by the UH Department of Public Safety and is funded by Parking and Transportation Services. All of its services are offered to the UH community at no cost. For Parking Enforcement assistance, the campus community can call 713-743-5849.

Parking Enforcement Officers (PEOs) are on duty from 6 a.m. – 10 p.m., Monday through Friday. They patrol campus on foot, bicycle and in marked vehicles, and are present during any instance in which a vehicle on campus must be towed.

The most common regulations enforced on campus include vehicles without proper tags parked in disability spaces and in fire zones.

“These are state laws,” Lozano said. “If there’s a vehicle in a fire zone, we have no choice but to tow it.”

Frequently, Lozano said, many parking violations are committed because people cannot immediately locate a parking space. Although some lots can become full, he indicated that his office is prepared to locate alternate spots around campus.

“We know these lots, and we know which ones will usually have open spaces,” Lozano said. “Although the garage construction cut into some of the parking, 700 spaces were added to augment this deficit. Once the garage is open in January, all our faculty, staff and students should have no trouble finding open spaces.”

The new parking garage is scheduled to begin operating in January and will provide 1,500 spaces. Lozano said that the garage will create new territory for the PEOs to monitor as they must ensure that all of its slots are occupied by those who have the correct permits.

“It’s important that everyone can park in the lots to which they are assigned,” he said. “Most importantly, we want everyone to be safe in our lots. If anyone ever has a problem and sees one of our officers, they just need to wave him down. No matter what the situation is, we’re here to help.”

Mike Emery
memery@central.uh.edu

Mike Emery
memery@central.uh.edu