The parking garages on campus are places for students to congregate and are essential for campus culture. ORACLE PHOTO/THOMAS MARRS

Crescent Hill Parking Garage is a place I’ve been many times since starting as a student at USF. I’ve gone up there to study, watch bands practice or just look at the stars. 

I know for a fact that I’m not the only one, as I’m never alone when I go to Crescent Hill. There are always other people relaxing, practicing instruments or doing whatever.

As a matter of fact, this isn’t just exclusive to Crescent Hill. All of the parking garages at USF have people using them for activities outside of parking.

USF’s parking garages are centers of activity and culture on campus, because they’re landmarks and provide students with places to hang out after classes. 

Related: OPINION: USF’s music scene is the lifeblood of the campus

The loudest aspect of the parking garages being used as cultural hubs is the bands that practice there. 

Almost every night, I can go outside and hear guitars, bass, drums and vocals serenade the air, all coming from Crescent Hill. 

Without parking garages, bands wouldn’t have a central location to practice or spread awareness of their music by playing in places where everybody on campus can hear them. 

There have been a few nights my roommate and I overheard bands practicing and went out of our way to Crescent Hill to watch and listen to who was practicing. 

But non-rock bands aren’t the only musicians who practice on top of parking garages on campus. 

I’ve overheard the Heard of Thunder, USF’s marching band, practice atop the Collins Boulevard Garage, and I’ve seen a couple of DJs practice there as well. 

But bands and music aren’t the only things that the parking garages are good for. 

I talked to other USF students on social media to see what other ways they have seen the parking garages used besides parking. 

There were so many more ways than what I’ve seen, and it honestly blew me away at how great the parking garages on campus are for activities. 

Skateboarding culture is big in the parking garages, as many people I talked to are part of that community and have seen skaters at and around them. 

The same was said for dance rehearsals, photoshoots and table top activities. 

Another major use of the parking garages is for religious gatherings, with the Muslim Student Association often organizing prayers there. 

But unfortunately, the parking garages are not perfect pillars of culture. There’s a mix of good and bad, just like everything on this campus.

Related: OPINION: USF students shouldn’t have to pray through hate

One example involves the incident in which MSA members were needlessly harassed during a prayer event at the Collins Boulevard Garage in November. 

Thankfully, the perpetrators have since been charged with criminal misdemeanors for disturbing a religious assembly and disorderly conduct. 

What happened to these students was terrible and inexcusable. USF’s parking garages should be a place for everybody to do anything as long as it doesn’t cause harm or danger. 

Another example is when a concert atop Crescent Hill was shut down by University Police earlier this semester.

I was attending the event, and the officer said it had to be shut down for safety and regulatory reasons. 

The event was moved to an off-campus location, allowing the festivities to continue and demonstrating our student body’s perseverance. 

With the incidents I’ve listed, it’s clear to see that USF’s parking garages are far from sunshine and rainbows. 

However, they’ve unintentionally become a hub for all things good and bad about USF — perseverance, fun, music and parking hell.