Parking Policies

Approved: VP for Administration and Finance
Responsible Office: Campus Safety
Responsible Administrator: Chief of Campus Safety
Last revised: July 25, 2024

Statement

The college has approximately 1,540 total parking spaces for more than 2,080 registered faculty, staff, and student vehicles. Therefore, the college does not guarantee that there will be a space available in the parking system for every vehicle registered and strongly discourages students from bringing their motor vehicles to Northampton.

Scope / Responsibilities

The main student parking areas are limited to 218 spaces; perimeter parking areas are limited to 80 spaces. (Total number of student decals is 298.) The Campus Safety Parking Office will announce when the sale of decals will commence. Decals will be offered first to seniors, then juniors, and any remaining decals will then be available for sophomores until they are sold out.

Policy

Decals for the main student parking areas cost $150 and $25 for perimeter parking.
Students with outstanding parking fines will be unable to purchase a decal until they have settled their balance.
Student vehicles with valid parking decals must be parked in their assigned student parking (green-lined or perimeter spaces) at all times.
When affixing a new decal, any expired Smith College decals must be removed from the vehicle.
Commuter (Day) students with registered vehicles may purchase a decal for $25 and park in red-lined spaces on the upper level in the Parking Garage. Commuter student parking is available on a first-come, first-serve basis. Vehicles with commuter student decals may also park occasionally overnight and on weekends in the Parking Garage top level except during snow emergencies. If a space cannot be found on the top level of the Parking Garage during the snow ban, parking will be allowed in white-lined spaces on campus during class attendance.
Students housed in off-campus housing who wish to bring and park their vehicle on campus must also purchase a commuter student parking decal and follow the set rules for commuter student parking. The City of Northampton governs on-street parking regulations and parking there is at your own risk.
Unregistered vehicles on campus are subject to ticketing, booting, and towing.
Students’ guests must register with the Campus Safety Parking Office. Please visit the Campus Safety Parking Office website at https://www.smith.edu/about-smith/campus-safety/parking for more information on visitor parking. It is the hosting students’ responsibility to inform their guests of the College’s parking rules and regulations.
First-year students may not bring a vehicle to campus. First-year students found in violation of this policy will be referred to the College Conduct Board.

Weather-Related Emergency Parking Policy

In the event of an impending storm, Smith College will monitor weather reports. A parking ban will be issued via e-mail from Smith College when the emergency goes into effect. The ban will have instructions for students, faculty, and staff which will include: when the parking ban goes into effect for campus lots, the time by which vehicles should be moved, and the designated student lots you may park in. The parking ban expiry is included in the notification email.
Decaled student vehicles must remain in designated lots until the ban is lifted.
The parking ban is not related to any decision about a delayed opening of the college. Information concerning a delay, if any, will be available on the College Info Line (585-4636) and local radio and television stations beginning at approximately 6:30 a.m.
A student with a green student decal or yellow perimeter decal who leaves campus during the December recess or January term and wants to keep their vehicle on campus must park their vehicle in a designated parking lot in case there is a parking ban during their absence.
All questions regarding the winter parking season, snow emergencies or general parkin questions should be directed to the Campus Safety Parking Office at 413-585-2277 or by emailing parkingdecals@smith.edu.
With limited parking on campus, we are unable to provide parking to off-campus students who do not have a parking decal.

City of Northampton Parking Information

All students are warned that parking on the streets of Northampton is very limited. Students may not park overnight on Kensington Avenue. Only Kensington Avenue property owners or their tenants will be allowed to park overnight on Kensington Ave. There is a parking ordinance in effect in the city of Northampton that calls for alternate-side, alternate-day parking on several streets near the Quadrangle: Harrison, and Washington Avenues and Dryads Green. It is based on a system of odd days (1,3,5, etc.) and even days (2,4,6, etc.). This means that every day at 11 a.m., if your car is parked on one of these streets, you must move it to the side that is legal for that day or to a legal parking place on some other street. Illegally parked cars will be ticketed and towed at the expense of the owner.
A second ordinance in effect citywide calls for ticketing of cars that are parked within three feet of driveways. Students are urged to be considerate of the College’s neighbors and not to block driveways, walkways, and alleys. Parking should be only in designated student college parking areas with proper decal or off-campus private lots or garages for rent.
During weather emergencies, parking is prohibited on all city streets. Weather emergencies may be called on any day, however, these are more common during the snow season. Parking on the streets of Northampton during weather emergencies is prohibited. Therefore, the college requests and strongly encourages students to purchase a Smith College parking decal and to park in designated lots rather than on the residential streets surrounding the campus. Students should check with the Northampton Parking Authority to ensure they are following all the rules and regulations the city has in place.

Winter Parking in the City of Northampton

The City of Northampton may call a parking ban at any time, which may not coincide with the College’s parking ban and vice versa. For information on a Northampton snow emergency and related parking bans, please call the City of Northampton Winter Information Line at 586-6969. You can also subscribe to an e-mail alert system. To sign up for Northampton alerts go to www.northamptonma.gov and join the DPW Alerts mailing list to receive e-mail notification of snow emergencies and parking bans. Northampton may call a snow emergency for extended days and when there is not a snow emergency at Smith.
During a snow emergency, the owner of any vehicle that is parked on city streets in violation of the above ordinance shall be fined and or towed by the Department of Public Works or the Northampton Police Department, and the owner of the vehicle will be responsible for the cost of towing and any storage charges that may accrue.

Policy Violations (if applicable)

Violations of college policies are adjudicated according to procedures outlined in the Student Handbook and the Employee Handbook, with disciplinary consequences imposed by the adjudicating authority up to and including dismissal. Some offenses are punishable under state and federal laws.
Campus Safety and Northampton police will ticket and tow cars that have violated specific parking regulations.
The college proactively enforces its parking regulations via a citation system. Vehicles that have accumulated three or more unpaid tickets will be subject to increased fines, booting, and towing, and their owners may lose their parking privileges or ability to purchase a decal for the upcoming year. Any vehicles that have been booted or towed from the College will not be released until all fines have been paid. Any unpaid violations of graduating students will be billed to the graduate’s account through Student Financial Services.