“Hectic.” “Challenging.” “Frantic.” These are just some of the words students use to describe their experience leaving the parking lot at MHS. Parking is never as simple as pulling out and pulling in everyday to school. It’s either trekking through the frigid winter wind to get to your (also very frigid) car, or it’s spending your 6th period in that one classroom that doesn’t have AC in the late spring only to get into your car that has been baking in the sun all day. But, for unlicensed freshmen or sophomores, the MHS parking lot can seem like an exclusive club that only some can get in. It’s difficult to obtain a parking pass with all the organizing for carpools and the system of seniority, but there are many different options available.
The first option for parking at MHS is the daily lot. This is a pricey option as each day costs $10 and you can only park 2 days out of the week, but the lot is full almost every day, so it’s a race to get one before everyone else. Passes can be purchased on minnetonkaschools.org where they are available at 12pm every Friday. The next method of parking is a free method but a risky one. Getting a spot on Frontage includes no application, “just get there early and hope there’s a spot,” as Emerson Morgan, ‘27, describes. If you’re not an early bird, or you don’t want to make the trek from the daily lot each day, the aforementioned parking pass may be the more complicated, but reliable option for you.
Getting a parking pass is not always guaranteed, so for your best chances of getting one you’ll need to share it with a friend. You and your carpool will have to fill out a form putting down your license plate numbers, but of course it’s not this simple. The next step of the process is you and your carpool will be quizzed on questions such as parking lot safety and policy which all must be completed before orientation day in September. You then must meet in the commons in order to provide your licenses and prove you actually have a carpool partner. Then, if you are approved for a pass you must pay $150 each, finally completing the process.
So now, through whatever method you choose, you now park at MHS, learning the rhythm and flow of the lot will take time and experience. When asking Hugo Mullaney, ‘25, on tips for getting out sooner he only said, “if you know the right spots you’ll be fine.” However, Mullaney wasn’t willing to reveal his secretive spots. No matter how you park, try not to end up on @mhsbadparking.
