When senior Will Brown received an email preventing parking on Arden Hills roads, he wasn’t too concerned about moving his car, since the email stated that cars would be ticketed starting the next day. But when he reached his car that afternoon, there was a parking ticket on the windshield of his car. “I was told I was safe and I felt a little lied to, and I felt like it wasn’t deserved because we didn’t get a warning, it was fine one day then the next we got a ticket after being warned and not getting a chance to correct the mistake,” Brown said.

Parking at Mounds View High School has changed over the years. There used to be seven different types of parking permits; however, now there are only two types: year-long permits and daily permits. Year-long permits are $225.00 for one year, while daily permits are $2.00 for one day. There are 20 daily permits available per day. While MVHS sells enough year-long permits to fill the parking lots, every day there are at least 20 drivers absent, allowing for the daily permits to fill those spaces. However, on some days, finding parking can be difficult as the permits are sold out. Due to this, some students either park in the community center or a nearby place. But, others choose to park in the school parking lot without a permit, which is a violation.

Parking violations are handled by Dan Engebretson from the high school office. During the morning, Engebretson is in the parking lots in his green Jeep Wrangler to spot any violations. Parking violations can entail anything from parking in the wrong areas, to running the curb or parking in reserved spaces. “If you don’t have a permit, there is a $25 fine, if you park in visitor or staff, those are $25 fines. If you park like a moron, I’m going to fine you $25,” Engebretson said. 

Fines range from $2 to $50, with towing as a last resort. “Usually if you have a permit I can look up your number and tell you to move, but if it gets repetitive then I’ll fine you,” added Engebretson. Paying the fines is simple, with security guard Matt Goldsmith accepting these payments in the security office. Since these fines are received by MVHS, they go directly to the school funds, where they can be used for the school’s benefit. These fines are written on an orange ticket, unlike the white paper used by the Ramsey County Sheriff’s Office. Parking fines and enforcement in the parking lots are handled by MVHS and not the Sheriff’s Office, though the Sheriff’s Office will ticket for parking illegally in a handicapped space and alert Engebretson to other violations. 

Mounds View has been taking care of ticketing for as long as the parking lots have been around, even through the system with seven permits. “I think the system with the two permits is better because it doesn’t complicate things as much,” said Brown. These parking tickets and fines may be for typical violations, however, they go to the school, which goes to fund new traffic improvements and other projects within MVHS.