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Thousands of public servants in Ottawa are scrambling after the Department of National Defence informed them they would lose their parking spaces and announced a lottery for new spots that some are calling the “Hunger Games of Parking.”

DND is in the process of moving to a new campus in Ottawa’s west end that has parking for just about half of the 9,300 employees who are expected to work there. DND officials have also acknowledged the site of the new headquarters is poorly served by existing bus routes, features few if any commercial parking options, and a top department official has acknowledged the campus is in a “relatively remote location.”

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To prepare for the coming parking crunch, the department has informed the 3,000 employees who have been working at the new campus for the last two years that their $35-a-month parking passes will expire in May and they will be required to apply for a chance to win a new spot. Priority will be given to expectant mothers, those with disabilities or limited mobility and employees who agree to carpool. The remaining passes for single vehicle drivers will be awarded at random in a lottery.