Parking at South Gwinnett High School is an adventure

This morning, I took my daughter to school late, because she wasn't feeling well. I felt again the frustration that visiting South Gwinnett High School involves. It's not the fault of the school staff, it's just that the school has had so many additions since it opened in 1957, that it's now completely FUBAR, and I mean that in the literal sense of the acronym (look it up.)


There must be a more efficient way to use that plot of land for education. The layout of the parking lot is so poorly designed, it surprises me every time I have the misfortune of having to visit the school. I so wish there was money in the budget to tear down all the buildings, re-plan the space and start all over with an efficient solution. That's not likely to happen, but please humor me and let me gripe about it a bit.

If you've never driven into South Gwinnett High School's parking lot, breathe a huge sigh of gratitude. If you have high blood pressure, do not drive in there. You see, the parking lot is a mish-mash of a little parking here, a little parking there. If you enter via Odum Street, you will meander down a narrow one-way corridor.

The aerial photograph below is from the website Southern-Star.net, and the area coded in yellow is the problem. It's not as wide as it appears here - keep in mind there are filled parking spaces taking up most of that area.

If you are lucky, you will be entering the school area while the kids are in class. If they are changing classes, then you will be stuck in there while hundreds of teenagers surround your car. Don't blame the kids - they only have 5 minutes to get to their next class, or they will be in trouble.

If the kids are changing classes, you can drive through there very slowly to prevent vehicular homicide. Most of the buildings have been add-ons through the years, and none of them seem to match, other than being a depressing prison dark brown color. Keep in mind that there are various walkways between the buildings, so teens can pop out in front of your car at any time. Try to keep a good attitude about this - pretend it's a video game like Frogger.

Ah, finally you will reach your intended destination on the other side of all the buildings - the Attendance Office. If you have never been to the Attendance Office, you will be out of luck. There is a sign that reads ATTENDANCE OFFICE, but it is far away from the door, because apparently for it to be anywhere near the door could cause someone to actually find the Attendance Office. You must already know that the Attendance Office is across the parking lot from the back of the football field's scoreboard.

Now that you have perhaps identified the correct door you intend to enter eventually, look around for a parking spot.

Haha! Got you, that was a trick question. There are only about 6 parking spaces near the Attendance Office, and 99.8% of the time, all are filled. Find a place anywhere you can park, if you dare. I usually squeeze in near some cars that I think belong to teachers.

Finally done with whatever you had to do at the Attendance Office, you can leave. Remember, it's a one-way parking lot drive, even though you will see cars squeezing by going the wrong way. Do your best not to get the paint scraped off your car. Again, patience will be a virtue.

As you attempt to exit onto Skyland Drive, there are two exit lanes. Yes, you can barely see the painted arrows, but try to squint and maybe you can just make them out. Both lanes are out-going, and as you attempt to get into the left exit lane, someone will invariably enter using that lane. Accidents just waiting to happen because of the poor design of everything involved around the school.

So what is the best solution? Probably to park in the parking lot across Skyland Drive and then to walk over to the office. That parking lot has been partially taken over by some kind of construction also, so there is very little parking there. You can park in Westminster Presbyterian Church's parking lot if you have a permit, or you can park there for just a short time if you must. However, you will walk across Odum Street and then have to walk through the school or around the school to get to the Attendance Office.

Don't park in the K-Mart parking lot - they have put up signs threatening to tow your vehicle.

Have a nice day!