The security arrangements for President Clinton's Commencement Day visit will change commuting and parking patterns at MIT on Friday, June 5.
Campus Police Chief Anne Glavin recommends that employees reporting for a normal work day may want to avoid traffic snarls by getting to MIT by 8am.
Chief Glavin says that Memorial Drive, Massachusetts Avenue and Vassar Street may be closed for a period of up to an hour later in the morning. Other streets may also be affected, as all the details may not be worked out until the day before the President's visit.
This year's parking strategy is different from past years, in terms of which facilities will be used for guests and employees, John McDonald, parking coordinator, has announced. Parking arrangements generally are that employees will park on the west side of campus and graduates and guests on the east side of campus.
Because of the building closings from 2am-1pm on June 5, there will be many fewer employees parking during those hours. Employees assigned to park in East Garage, West Garage or the CRA lot (at Main and Ames Streets) will park in West Garage and the West Lot.
The Main Lot and Main Lot annex will be closed. Only employees with Main Lot stickers may park in either Kresge Lot or the East Garage and lot.
Graduates and their guests will park in lots off Main Street: the East Garage, the East Annex lot and the CRA lot at the corner of Main Street and Ames Street, between the Whitehead Institute and Legal Sea Foods.
Parking for disabled guests will be on Ames Street, at the West Garage, and the lot at the corner of Mass. Ave. and Vassar Street, which will be used exclusively for disabled guests.
A version of this article appeared in MIT Tech Talk on May 27, 1998.