The days of parent drop-off at the Pool Door Entrance have officially ended. 

Although it was announced last week that the doors’ renovation had finished and are now open for use, administration will continue placing cones to block cars from turning left toward the East Lot.

“The flow of the parking lot that we’ve created, we believe is a more systematic way of getting cars in and out and it is safer for our students who park [in the east lot] and cross the parking lot to get on the sidewalk,” Principal Karen Calcaterra said.

Along with the new drop-off system that was created at the beginning of the school year, the cones between the right turn lane and Clayton Road will become a permanent fixture through the City of Wildwood. 

“[The cones] have helped tremendously with traffic flow as have our pattern. We start chaining off [parking] rows, if you turn right, at about 7:40 a.m., and that’s why when you come in… [you] have to wind around the campus. We get more cars on the lot so there are fewer cars backed up on Clayton or 109,” Calcaterra said.

Administration plans to keep this system for the entire year, but whether or not it is used in future years will depend on its overall success. 

“We evaluate all of our practices each year, and so I wouldn’t say ‘this is it, and [parking] is going to be this way for 10 years,’ but it is going to be that way this year,” Calcaterra said.

Ultimately, this decision was based on student safety despite its aid with traffic flow Calcaterra said, “There [were] too many choices for drivers: going straight, going right, going left. And the majority of our kids park in the parking lot closest to the stadium, and with buses and cars flying through there it’s not as safe as it could be.”