Senior Parking Prices: Is the Tradition Worth the Cost?

Pick a Spot// Picking a design, painting the spot, and getting to park there every morning can make senior year more memorable. However, when a $65 parking spot can turn into hundreds of dollars after raffle tickets and supplies, it leaves one important question: how much should a senior memory really cost? (Photo courtesy of Emma Fronczak)

For years, students walk past colorful senior parking spots without having one of their own. When senior year rolls around, they finally get the opportunity to have their turn. They get to choose a design, grab some paint, and turn a plain piece of asphalt into something that represents them. However, those spots require a lot of money.

The senior parking spot itself costs around $65 on the front end, but that doesn’t always include the extra expenses that come with designing and maintaining that spot. Around $40 can be spent on raffle tickets, and then students still need supplies to actually paint their spot. Paint, brushes, rollers, tape, and other materials can be pretty expensive. Depending on how detailed the design is, supplies can cost around $50 on the low end of the scale. Add everything together, and a student could end up spending at least around $150. So, is spending over $150 really worth it for a parking spot that only lasts one school year?

At first, that amount can seem like way too much. However, there is another side to consider. Students aren't required to spend $150 on painting supplies. The amount someone spends depends on the design they choose. Because of this, it isn't completely fair to blame the school for every dollar students decide to spend. Part of the cost comes from how much each individual student chooses to spend while decorating their spots.

Besides the monetary cost, getting a senior parking spot is also a major time commitment. Students need to complete a contract with a picture of their planned design and follow instructions and guidelines for how they can paint their spot. They also need to get their parking sticker from the Activities Office. These rules make sense because the school needs to make sure designs are appropriate. Still, when you put together the money, planning, supplies, and time, getting a senior parking spot can become a much bigger commitment than it first seems. 

For many seniors, the answer might be yes. Senior year only happens once, and painting a parking spot can be something students have looked forward to for years. It isn't only about having somewhere to park your car. It's about choosing something that represents you, spending time painting it, taking pictures, and pulling into your own personalized spot every morning. That is what makes the tradition special.

However, not every student has the same amount of money to spend. For one family, spending a couple hundred dollars on a senior tradition might not be a big deal. For another family, that could be way too much. Senior year already comes with other expenses, and parking is only one of them. This doesn't mean senior parking spots should go away. Instead, there could be ways to make the tradition more affordable.

One simple solution could be sharing supplies. If someone buys a container of blue paint and only uses half of it, another senior could use what is left. Students could share brushes, rollers, tape, and other materials instead of everyone buying completely new supplies. The school could possibly even have a place where students donate leftover paint and supplies. Instead of half-used paint sitting in someone's garage or eventually being thrown away, another student could use it. Small changes like these could save students money without changing the tradition itself. A senior parking spot should be about showing your personality, not having the most expensive design in the parking lot.

After four years, students leave with friendships, pictures, inside jokes, and memories of things that probably seemed small when they happened.That's why senior parking is a tradition worth keeping. But sharing leftover paint, donating supplies, and choosing affordable designs could make it possible for more students to be part of it. Senior year only happens once, and the price of making a memory shouldn't decide who gets to experience it. Eventually, the paint will fade, and the parking spot will belong to someone else. But the memories made there can last much longer than anything painted on the concrete.