The first significant decline in the sale of parking permits at NIU is not surprising. NIU has sold almost 2,000 fewer permits this year than last year.

NIU sold about 800 fewer orange stickers than last year. Orange permits are sold to students living in the residence halls. Also, about 650 fewer brown permits were sold. Brown permits are sold to students who live off campus and are served by Huskie bus routes.

Officials link the decrease in sales to a decline in enrollment or fewer parking spaces. A more obvious reason is the dramatic increase in price.

Students who lived in the residence halls last year could get an orange permit for $7, and off-campus students could get a brown permit for $5. This year, the permits are about $30 for those students. The price for faculty and staff permits also rose, and there were 163 fewer of these blue permits sold than last year.

The decrease in sales should not be cause for concern. For years, NIU has sold far more permits than spaces, so perhaps the decrease is a benefit to those who shelled out the extra money.

But the decrease certainly is no benefit to some permit holders. Campus Parking Manager Lynn Fraser said she believed fewer brown permits were sold because there are few spaces designated for those permit holders. And she is certainly right.

Although brown permit holders have paid more than four times what they did last year, there are fewer spaces for them to park.

Essentially, brown permit holders can park on campus only after 4 p.m. This would explain a reduction in sales of brown permits. Afterall, these permit holders are likely to find a parking space closer to campus on the street before 4 p.m. And at 7 p.m., many campus lots are open to anyone.

The NIU Parking Committee should consider redesignating spaces for brown permit holders. Not only is it likely to increase permit sales, but it will make students who buy the brown permits more likely to feel like they are getting something for the extra money they have to pay this year.