Students Complete Initial Study for City Parking-Area Redesign

Three civil engineering technology students at Pennsylvania College of Technology recently presented their findings and recommendations from a feasibility study they completed on a city parking area currently being considered for redesign.

Morgan L. Etters, of Beech Creek; and William R. Bolt and David P. Schneider, both of Williamsport, made their presentation not only to their instructor and classmates, but also to their "client" − the Williamsport Parking Authority and Williamsport Mayor Mary Wolf. All three students expect to earn bachelor's degrees this month and have found employment in their career field.

The presentation summarized the comprehensive study the students conducted of the adjacent Market Street and Mulberry Street parking lots near the James V. Brown Library. The project originated from a meeting last fall with the Parking Authority, which indicated its interest in conducting a comprehensive study of its parking lots.

The civil engineering technology department recognizes that these types of situations are ideal for senior capstone projects, since they provide students with practical (rather than theoretical) learning experiences.

The students completed extensive on-site surveying with a total station and data collector, as well as a traffic-flow study. Based on the data gathered, they proposed various designs for the lots' layout, pavement, drainage and a new retaining wall. They also offered a cost estimate and schedule for the project. The goal was to optimize, economically and aesthetically, the number of parking spaces while providing safe traffic and pedestrian flow in and out of the lots and surrounding streets.

The information provides the authority with a blueprint to develop a formal request for the design of the lots' repair or reconstruction.

For more information about the academic programs offered by the School of Industrial and Engineering Technologies at Penn College, call (570) 327-4520, or visit online .