The crowded row of parked cars on Garden Road soon will be a lot less busy.

On Thursday, a new DeKalb ordinance will place parking restrictions on the road that will make the possibility of students parking there for class impossible.

Parking will be prohibited from 2 a.m. to 7 p.m. Parking currently is prohibited in parts of Garden Road from 2 a.m. to 6 a.m.

Barsema Hall has contributed greatly to the congestion and the largest college on campus now will have to find a different place to park.

“It sucks,” said Samir Kanan, a senior OMIS major. “It’s not fair for students, I guess we were not informed; I don’t think there is a problem here.”

Zech Palm, a senior industrial engineering technology major, agreed.

“I don’t think it’s fair at all,” he said. “There is not enough parking at NIU.”

The city passed the ordinance during its council meeting Sept. 23.

“There was no real opposition to the ordinance,” assistant city engineer Joel Maurer said.

The move was supported by NIU, DeKalb Police Chief Feithen, First Ward Alderman Andy Small and Second Ward Alderman Kris Povlsen.

“It seems as though every time the students find an advantage with parking, the school finds some way of stopping it from happening,” said Dan Kozera, a senior accounting major.

Maurer explained that there were numerous issues contributing to the decision to prohibit parking along Garden Road.

He noted that Garden Road residents have to deal with the constant congestion, the inability of buses to run efficiently and safely and the obscurity of the attractive fronts of buildings along the road.

NIU is in the process of building off-street parking east of Garden Road to accommodate the loss of daytime parking.