Newspapers / Daily Tar Heel (Chapel … / Jan. 16, 1980, edition 1 / Page 1
Part of Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.) / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
Sunny 0 II Rhyming Forrest Read of the English department invites everyone to a poetry forum Thursday. See story on page 5. Fair tonight with lows in the mid 30s. Sunny and cooler Thursday with highs in the 40s. There is a 10 percent chance of rain. Serving the students and the University community since 1893 Volume 87, Issue No. 01 73 Wednesday, January 16, 1930, Chapel Hill, North Carolina NwSportArta 833-C243 BusinMiAdvwItelne 1 33-11(3 No peace on the Hill Council reviews -noise law rf( rf f . r K I 2 A 7 r r " WUilMBrtl( it Graffiti abounds in strangest places The covered walkway outside of the Health Sciences Library construction site has become a forum for expressions of I contrasting political 8 beliefs. A contemporary ICIlroy damaged several I posters and left his mark & above one of them. By ANNE-MARIE DOWNEY StafT Writer Chapel Hill Town Council member Bev Kawalec is organizing a committee to study town noise problems, in response to complaints from residents that the town's noise ordinance is ineffective. "It appears the ordinance is not having the desired effect," Kawalec said. "There seems to be about as much noise as there was before. "The committee will determine a) is it (the noise ordinance) working or is noise still a problem and b) what can be done?" she said. The Chapel Hill Town Council approved the current noise ordinance in 1978 mainly in an attempt to curtail the noise coming from campus dorms and fraternity and sorority houses. The noise level restrictions resulted from a study by a noise ordinance committee which included representatives from Student Government and the lnterfraternity Council. Kawalec said her decision to reopen the issue in part was prompted by a petition brought before the council in May by Frederick Behrends, a University history professor and a member of the original noise ordinance committee. Behrends urged the council to re evaluate the ordinance, which he said is too permissive. . "I am the one who got it underway last time simply by going down there and raising so much hell," Behrends said Tuesday. But the council took no action in May. Kawalec took up the issue again after the November election of Mayor Joe Nassif. Nassif told Kawalec to go ahead with her plans. "We still have some problems with noise." Nassif said. Behrends said he was glad to hear that Kawalec is taking steps to re-assess the ordinance. "It (the ordinance) is quite inefficient," he said. "It is so loud at my house, which is about two 9 jssj, miles from a fraternity - w 1 house, sometimes we can't even have a conversation." But IFC President Tim Lucido said. "I just haven't heard that many complaints about it (noise) from the community." v.. Lucido also said, Bev KawalCC "They (town officials) bring it up every time around springtime. There always seems to be some council member who brings it up." Part of the problem with the existing ordinance. Behrends said, is that it only sets maximum noise levels. "Nuisance is not just a matter of level. It's not something that can be measured," Behrends said. Behrends said he would like to see a change in the ordinance w hich would allow police to limit noise in response to complaints even if the noise is within the established decibel limits. Ben Callahan, administrative assistant of the Chapel Hill Police Department, said. "We are using it (the ordinance) and it is efficient in monitoring sound. But we do continue to get complaints. Even if it (the noise) is within the accepted level, people still complain, but we have no legal recourse." The police department enforces the established noise restrictions by monitoring the decibel levels with an electronic meter. The permitted noise levels vary with days of the week and different times of the day. Special permits are available from the chief of police to authorize higher decibel levels than the ordinance permits. "One thing it (the ordinance) has done is taken the guess work out t of our hands," Callahan said. "It was supposed to give us standards to go by and keep noise within an acceptable level. But acceptable to whonVT Kawalec said she only is beginning to organize the committee. She said she hopes to include all interested persons in the discussions, including Student Government leaders and representatives from the IFC and the Residents Hall Association. Kawalec said she hoped to have some type of evaluation completed by the end of spring. Garritv i ml Kelly suggests election of Union-president presidential candidate By PAM HILDEBRAN Staff Writer Kevin Garrity, a junior history major from Deal, N.J., became the first announced candidate for student body president Tuesday. "The office of student body president is very important in terms of dealing with administrative policy, Garrity said. "The groundwork for the credibility of Student Government has already been established. It will be the job of the next student body president to continue with that so students have an institutionalized output in working with administrators." Garrity said he believes Student Government has grown during the past years by incorporating a greater number of students. The . student body president should have the ability to motivate and effectively work with his staff, he said. Garrity said his goals are to work for more student input in administrative policy and decision making. "Students should play a role in dealing with them (administrators), not against them, and bring about the best policy for students," he said. Garrity declined to name one specific issue this early in the campaign, but he said the leadership role of the student body president is very important. 1 want to stress that the groundwork has already been laid," Kevin Garrity Garrity said. "But one of the ways to get the institutionalized student input is through the chancellor's committee." He said he would continue to improve relations between students and these committees. Garrity said he will not limit his campaign to on-campus students. "I tend to have a high-energized campaign that will include Greeks, dorms, student organizations and apartment dwellers," he said. Garrity said he thinks his experience will benefit his campaign. "The idea of having responsibility and working with responsibility and what I've learned makes me the best candidate for student body president," he said. Garrity has served as treasurer of 8th floor James dorm and as editor of The Southern Part of Heaven Student Consumer Action Union's housing guide. He serves on the Student Health Services Administrative Board and worked in the J.B. Kelly administration as University Services Coordinator in the area of food services, Student Health Services, Financial Aid and Student Stores. He is a member of Chi Psi fraternity. By GEORGE JETER Staff Writer Student Body President J.B. Kelly has asked the Carolina Union board of directors to consider changing the Union presidency from an appointed to an elected office. "My first impulse is to have an election. Elections generate new ideas and help to bring in a new structure to the office," Kelly said Monday night. Each Carolina Union president currently is selected through a process of essays and interviews conducted by members of the Union board of directors. The board of directors, comprised of members of various student organizations, represent the UNC student body in the process of presidential selection. Incumbent Carolina Union President Bob Long said he will remain neutral on Kelly's request. "I'm not really opposed to the present system," Long said. Both Long and Kelly said they think students need to learn more about the office. The Union president basically has "general responsibility for all union operations and policies," Long said. The Union president picks the members of the Union Activities Board and is chairperson of the board of directors. Long said that so far this school year he has overseen the spending of about $200,000 for activities ranging from free flicks to Union-sponsored concerts. Kelly said an open election by the student body would increase awareness about the office and bring more people's ideas to the position. "I'm not criticizing Bob Long's job as president in fact the Union presidents have probably worked more successfully than the student body presidents in the last ten years.r Kelly said. "You just never know how they decide who should be president." The same issue arose in 1973 when a referendum was put to students to decide whether they wanted the post to become popularly elected or to retain its appointed status. Students voted to keep the selection process by a 56-44 percent margin. The 1973 Union president, Gary Phillips, asked to keep the selection process so the Union president would not be under political pressure to use funds for such events as beer parties at the cost of more cultural diverse activities. . Opponents of an open election also argued that the president's office would become the object of a popularity contest perhaps, ignoring the skills needed to oversee Union activities. Opponents to the selection process argued in 1 973 that an election would bring the office into the open and bring events more in line with what UNC students wanted. In any case, it is too late this year to do anything other than appoint the Union president for next year through the normal board of directors selection process. Long said. Kelly's request will be heard in April at an open forum before the board of directors. Long added. Any full-time UNC student interested in being a candidate for next year's Union presidency can obtain application forms at the Union desk. The deadline for applications is Feb. 1. Ilf Gold fever 71 iiraem w hot By JONATHAN RICH Staff Writer Gold fever is sweeping across the state as thousands of amateurs and professionals alike rush to jewelry and coin stores, buying and selling anything that glitters, while more adventurous prospectors investigate old gold mines. "It's a panic," said Theodore Graeple of the Triangle Coin and Stamp Shop. "We've had very, very active trading in both silver and gold over the last few weeks. People are frightened and want to put their money into a solid currency. Now we're completely out of gold in the shop." Graeple said contrary to belief, most people are buying gold and selling silver. But there is an extraordinary assortment of gold and silver items pouring in from eager sellers. "We are not ordinarily junk dealers, but you name it, it's coming in," he said. Some common items include grandmother's gold teeth, silver place settings, and old watch cases, Graeple said. Graeple also said professional speculators were playing the gold market using rolls of gold coins. Among the amateurs, women seemed to be doing the most gold buying, he said.. It was the same story in other gold and silver exchange shops. "Our business has skyrocketed since Dec. 15," said James Home of Horne-James Coins store in Carrboro. "Our profit margins have not increased that much, but the volume is enormous. We are buying gold chimes, silverware, fillings anything that- can be weighed and verified." Home said most of the silver went to a refinery for smelting, while many of the gold coins were resold into the local gold market. Home also said they could not even publish their prices anymore because of the market's rapid fluctuations. Area jewelry stores appear to be making the most of It .y' ,j Today, This Is a King's rsiuom gold fever. Although rising gold prices have driven up retail prices, it has created a good effect, according to Ed Watkins of Diehls Jewelry in Durham. "The higher the price of gold, the more our sales increase," Watkins said. Watkins said media coverage of the gold and silver markets is largely responsible for the tremendous interest in both commodities. But he said North Carolina prices are lower than those in northern metropolitan areas. The run on precious metals is the result of a phenomenal increase in the price of gold and silver during the past six months. Within a year, the price of gold has more than tripled from $200 to $700 an ounce at one point Tuesday, while silver has shot from $6 to more than $45 an ounce. The high price of gold and silver will also cau&e significant increases in the price of dental work during the next few months. "Most of us are concerned that gold speculation could push prices to a point where many people can't afford to buy crowns anymore," said Dr. R. Lyn Wiggs, president of the Raleigh-Wake County Dental Society. Dental fees in the Triangle area have remained stable See GOLD on page 2 Experts fear recession for state -Economic outlook :80 By JOHN DUSENBURY Staff Writer As economists look into the 80s, the economy continues to present a mixed bag of good and bad news. Although there has been growth in employment and income on the national level, many economists are predicting a recession sometime in the coming decade. If a recession should materialize, local economists speculate that North Carolina, with its dependence on consumer goods such as furniture and textiles, should feel the crunch. Many of the factors affecting the U.S. economy will also influence the state's economy. Slower growth is forecast for 1980. UNC economists said during recent interviews that the state's successful industrial development campaign heralded by Gov. Jim Hunt may have brightened the economic horizon by bringing in new types of industry and employment, t Donald Liner, a state and local economy expert with the UNC Institute of Government said the state's economy has fared better in the past few decades than other areas of the country. "We are located well geographically between the north and south and also to the west," Liner said. "We have good labor supply with low wages and ample workers, and our mild climate creates low energy costs. Also, markets are improving because of the growth of income." In addition to long-term advantages. Liner pointed out some drawbacks in the system. "We have relied heavily on manufacturing employment industries have slow growth and low wages," he said. "As the nation's economy grows, employment in our major indutries (textiles, furniture, apparel) will probably not grow as fast. We have diversified in the past and should continue to diversify at a greater degree." Joel Schwartz, a UNC Bowman Gray professor of political science, also cited tobacco as a dominating force in North Carolina's economic future. Schwartz said the long-term domestic outlook for tobacco is not good. However, the increase in tobacco sales abroad should neutralize any losses frpm a decline in tobacco sales at home. Schwartz also said that, to some extent, the furniture and textiles activities are closely related to the housing market. "A continued decline of sales and construction of See BUSINESS on page 2 Area merchants hopeful, confident Experts say a recession could hurt North Carolina, with its dependence on consumer goods such as furniture and textiles. Shoppers may buy less but look for more quality. By LYNN CASEY Suff W rher Although economists warn that high costs will continue to rise and the money supply will decrease in the 1980s, several local merchants say they are optimistic about the new decade. "I don't anticipate it (the 1980s) being much of a change, but the decade w ill be just as challenging as the '70s," said Ralph Travis, owner of Three Wishes, a downtown gift shop. "I think it is just as always business people have to be creative." Travis said. "A downward turn in the economy w ill not be fatal to anyone doing his business well." Travis said people were shopping more carefully and buying the more expensive, quality Hems that they considered worthwhile purchases. Other merchants also noted a shopping trend in buying quality merchandise. Addi Raynor, manager of Casual Corner, a clothing store at the University Mall. said. "Things are a little more expensive, but 1 think customers have become more quality minded since they arc having to pay more. Raynor said she did not think her store would feel the money pinch either. "If they want it. they'll pay for it." she said. The manager of Carolina Outdoor Sports also said there was a good market for quality equipment even though prices were going up. Leather and fabric products such as sleeping bags and tents, made from a petroleum base, will increave in cmt because of the energy crisis, he laid. Chuck Mohlc. manager of Hackney's Sporting Goods, was not as optimistic about the coming year as were other merchant!. "Sales will be down much lev this year than last year since there is less money in circulation." Mohlc said. "Clothing is still selling well, but the other merchandise is down." Jogging, which wa popular in the 70s. hi reached its peak and is leveling offf. Mohlc said. The sale of jogging shoes and outfits is off 20 percent from lait year, he said. "Running is definitely losing its popularity." Although jofcging seems to he on the decline, the interest in bicycling is increasing, said Jim Rumfelt. manager of the Clean Machine, a Carrboro cycle shop. Bicycle sales more than doubled in 1979. he taid. arid buMnc will continue to grow during the 1980s becauve of the energy cmti. "Like everythingeUe the price will be going up." Seo ECONOMY on pago 4
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Jan. 16, 1980, edition 1
1
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75