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aliP Satlu ®ar Heel W News/Feat f 105 years of editorial freedom Serving the students and the University community since 1893 ... Js 'a - DTH/DAVID SANDLER A suspect yells "discrimination, that's what it is" Tuesday as he is being escorted to jail. After a three-month investigation, Chapel Hill police arrested 27 suspects on felony drug charges. Gingrich Speaks at WC. Rally U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich commented on Clinton’s woes after a party rally at a Raleigh hotel. Bv Emily Cramer Staff Writer RALEIGH - U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich, R-Ga., expressed dis taste with the recent developments of the Clinton scandal Tuesday. “I am uncomfortable with a good bit of the Starr report and the testimony the president has given,” he said. “I wish he had told the impeachment truth from the Process Could beginning and Begjn j n j Weeks made * e Seepage? process entire- 3 ly unnecessary.” Though he avoided direct specula tion on the outcome of the congression al investigations, Gingrich offered assur ance of the effectiveness of the federal government in the face of such adversi ty during Lis speech at the North Raleigh Hilton. “We should not ' rush to pass judge- - ment for the presi- Br * dent, and we B JML should not rush to H pass judgement JBB against the presi “This is not a Hr crisis; it is the Pr § :-9 M Constitution work- f g * ing as it should.” , . ~, r ■ • i Speaker of the House Gingrich P NevvtGingrich pushed the addressed the importance of Clinton scandal public considera- during his speech in tion in upcoming Raleigh on Tuesday, months, especial ly in the interest of future generations. “Watch from the standpoint of your children and grandchildren and know that no one is above the law and no one is below the law,” he said. In an effort to fuel the fire behind David Page, a U.S. House candidate in the state’s second district, Gingrich spoke on issues pressing Washington politicians and the differences between liberal and conservative ideology. “The liberals believe the further you are away from reality, the more power you should have so you can make abstract decisions,” he said. “We believe the closer you are to reality, the more power you should have so you can make real decisions that affect real people.” Gingrich further gave a detailed explantation of other issues facing the country, especially the tax-cut bill, which contained provisions to eliminate inheritance taxes, establish an average : See GINGRICH, Page 9 Franklin Street Faces Changes Although rent on the street is the highest in the Triangle, tenants say the price is well worth it. By Matt Leclercq and Angela Lea Staff Writers Not every town has a beating heart - a center that reflects its people and per sonalities. But the sidewalks of Franklin Street, perhaps as nationally well-known as the University itself, are alive day and night and symbolize the town’s economic virility. Franklin Street is also the kind of place that makes business owners smile in their sleep. More than 24,000 stu dents live, work, and play within walk ing distance. Thousands of thick-wallet ed alumni and sports fans cram Chapel Hill regularly for games, and there’s no need for business owners to sweat when classes are out for the summer - confer ences and student tours keep the cus tomers coming. But the appeal of Franklin Street comes with a price. Tenants on the 100 block of East Franklin Street, between Columbia and Henderson streets, pay from sls to S3O per square'foot, said Robert Humphreys, executive director of the Chapel Hill Downtown Commission. Those figures, on average, are high Housing to Consider Optional Cable Fees University housing hired a firm to examine financial feasibility in making cable access an optional service. By Colleen Jenkins Staff Writer The University has enlisted a telecommunications company to deter mine whether making cable an option rather than the standard in campus res idence halls is financially feasible, and the results should be available at the end of the week. The move came after Student Congress member Luke Meisner com plained he was paying for cable he was not using. While University housing officials agreed to consider Meisner’s com plaints, they said they were wary of cost increases students and the University could encounter if cable was made optional. The number of malefactors authorizes not the crime. Thomas Fuller Wednesday, September 23, 1998 Volume 106, Issue 82 FOCUS ON: DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT er than what Hillsborough Street tenants in Raleigh pay, said Peter Pace, a broker with York Properties. The average rent for commercial space on the section of Hillsborough Street, which is next to N.C. State University, was $12.50 to S2O per square foot. Pace said, adding that only those businesses directly across from campus pay around S2O. “Franklin Street is probably the high est rent in the Triangle - easily,” Pace said. In Hillsborough, downtown business owners pay from sl4 to sl7 per square foot, according to Hillsborough Economic Development Commission figures. In Chapel Hill, Smoothieville man ager Shayne Peninger said rent was a much-discussed issue among downtown small business tenants. Smoothieville, a four-shop chain begun last year by two brothers from the Triangle, opened on Franklin Street in January. “It’s rent that cripples businesses, it’s so expensive,” Peninger said. “Small businesses here thrive and out perform larger businesses,” Peninger said. “However it’s the rent on Franklin Street which determines (small busi nesses’) longevity,” he said. But rent is a slave to the law of supply and demand, Humphreys said. “There’s a finite amount of property on Franklin Street, and it’s the kind of property that people who invest in prop erty would love to own,” he said. “Rents are charged because that’s what the mar- “Our concern is affordability,” said Larry Hicks, associate housing director. Hicks and Wayne Kuncl, University housing director, recently met with Meisner to discuss his concerns about the inclusion of cable fees into student housing costs. Discussions with Meisner prompted the department to enlist the help of Teller Communications. If the company shows that optional cable could be financially possible for students and the University, Meisner said he planned to conduct a student survey to find the price students would be willing to pay for cable if made optional. “If enough students don’t want to pay for cable, then I plan to propose a bill for congress to request that the admin istration make cable optional if it is financially feasible,” Meisner said. University housing is facing a $2.7 million debt from the costs of installing cable and telephone services, along with Internet connections and networking in residence halls. Drug Investigation Yields 27 Warrants Residents cooperated with police to get drug dealers out of the Northside and Pine Knolls neighborhoods. By Matt Leclercq Staff Writer A local undercover police investiga tion culminated Tuesday afternoon with arrest warrants issued for 27 suspects facing drug charges. The three-month cooperative effort between police and residents of local neighborhoods plagued by dealers resulted in 66 felony charges against the suspects, Chapel Hill Police Chief Ralph "***,- ty), SH■Bgi * w • mi ; ,'HHf Jag DTH/MICHAEL KANAREK Melanie Wall moved her store, Bread & Butter Screenprinting, from Henderson Street to the Glenn-Lennox shopping center on N.C. 54. ket could bear.” Suzanne Parsons, who opened Caffetrio at the comer of Franklin and Henderson streets in 1995, said high rent was a disadvantage for small busi nesses. “I’ve seen (Franklin Street rent) change dramatically in the last three University hous ing included these fees in student fees -with student sup port -as part of a multi-million dol lar project to pro vide cable and Internet access to residence halls, Hicks said. Meisner acknowledged the financial situation of the University, but he stuck to his early concerns about cable fees. Director of University Housing Wayne Kuncl met with a student to dicuss cable fee concerns. “Cable is a luxury,” Meisner said. “I’m against the fact that the University is charging students for a service that is unnecessary and maybe even detrimen tal to our education.” Meisner’s concern about cable sur prised Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Services Dean Bresciani at the Sept. 8 Student Affairs Committee meet- Pendergraph said. Police arrested 14 suspects Tuesday and continue to locate others. “All of the violations involved selling and delivering of crack cocaine,” Pendergraph said. “But there are a num ber of different charges also.” Twenty-four suspects were charged with possession of crack with intent to sell and deliver. Other charges include conspiring to commit controlled sub stance violations and maintaining a vehicle for sale and delivery, according to police reports. Pendergraph said police began the operation the first week ofjuly after res idents of Northside and Pine Knolls neighborhoods complained of street dealing that was out of hand. years,” Parsons said from home in San Francisco. “That’s always a deterrent, but it’s part of the economy. “For a chain, rent is almost a deal.” Council member Joe Capowski said rent was high, but the town should See BUSINESSES, Page 4 ing. “I found this was an unusual com plaint,” he said. “At most major univer sities, (cable) has been part of the regu lar student rate for a long time.” Bresciani said he felt making cable optional could create a complicated bureaucracy, especially with the issue of who would keep track of which students did not want it. Increased costs for stu dents who chose to get cable would also be a problem. “The kind of class system that could occur makes me uncomfortable,” he said. “Those who have money have cable, and those who don’t have money don’t have cable.” Bresciani said he had also seen optional cable cause problems between roommates when he worked at the University of Nebraska at Kearney. “The question was if only roommate A pays for cable, can roommate B ever watch it?” The University Editors can be reached at udesk@unc.edu. News/Features/Arts/Sports 962-0245 Business/Advertising 962-1163 Chapel Hill, North Carolina O 1998 DTH Publishing Corp. All rights reserved. An undercover officer from an out-of town department assisted four Chapel Hill officers during the investigation, which involved buying drugs from street-sellers. The busts were meant to send a message to dealers who had turned some neighborhoods into open air drug markets, Pendergraph said. “Not being able to go out and sit in your own yard is unacceptable,” he said. Often, suspects charged with dealing drugs head back to the same streets and continue to sell, Pendergraph said. Residents asked police to add a con dition to the bond, which suspects must pay to get out of jail before their hear ings -one that forbids the suspects from See NARCOTICS, Page 9 Joint-Ticket Legislation Dropped Speaker Brad Morrison says more student input on the joint-ticket issue could result in a better solution. By Carrie Callaghan Staff Writer The bill that would have placed the student body president and vice presi dent candidates on a joint ticket was withdrawn from Student Congress on Tuesday night Speaker of Student Congress Brad Morrison withdrew the bill he had sponsored at a Rules and Judiciary Committee meeting. Student Body Vice President Emily Williamson said she was very pleased with the decision. “I think it shows a great deal of responsibility on the speaker’s part,” she said. Morrison said student response fig ured prominently in his decision. “After talking with a lot of people, I have some ideas that may resolve the matter,” he said. “There is a way that we as members of the Student Congress See RULES, Page 9 Own a Piece of History One of Chapel Hill's oldest buildings is up for sale after the Chapel Hill Preservation Society bought it and made some ground rules. The historic log cabin was once a tavern and a student residence. See Page 9. Tempting Theater Playmakers Repertory Company kicks off its season tonight with the opening of William Shakespeare’s The Tempest, which runs through Oct. 18. See Page 6. Ticket Time Turn out to watch the UNC football team march from Polk Place to Kenan Stadium for the next four Tar Heel Towns and get to see them play the Wolfpack in Charlotte. See Page 6. Today’s Weather Mostly sunny; Mid 70s Thursday. Mostly sunny; Mid 70s.
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
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Sept. 23, 1998, edition 1
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