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flatly ®ar MrH M ERIN MENDELL For the Law's, Public's Sake, Open Meetings I’ll give a big thumbs up to the town gown relations committee Chapel Hill Mayor Rosemary Waldorf and Chancellor James Moeser announced Oct 19, but m use another finger to express my feelings about the commit tee’s decision to close its meetings. Let’s forget all the arguments about the public’s right to know for a minute - although they are valid arguments. The decision is quite possibly illegal. North Carolina has an Open Meetings Law. That means, coinciden tally, that governmental meetings must be open. That means the town-gown relations decision to close its meetings is illegal unless members can prove it meets one of the law’s conditions for closing meetings. Council and committee member Kevin Foy defended the legality of the decision and told The Daily Tar Heel, “This is not a committee that has any authority to make any binding deci sion on the town.” Asa lawyer, Foy should know that, under North Carolina’s Open Meetings Law, this argument won’t cut it Under that law, it is illegal for any public body -and the town council is certainly a public body - or a commit tee of a public body to close its meet ings. Even if the committee has only an advisory function, it is still a public body under N.C. law. But you don’t have to take my word for it. Ruth Walden, a media law pro fessor in the UNC School of Journalism and Mass Communication, agrees with me. She told the DTH she thinks the meetings would need to be open legally. It’s not as though a public body can’t close a meeting under any circum stances. But the town-gown relations committee doesn’t seem to meet any of the conditions for closing a meeting. The committee is not addressing specific personnel or employee issues opdeciding whether to honor some one. The committee meetings won’t involve attorney-client privilege, or if they do, only those portions of the meetings should be closed. It’s not dealing with employment contracts, confidential or privileged information or criminal misconduct. The legal logic the committee could use is that it will be dealing with busi ness or industry expansion and real estate acquisitions, both of which are legal justifications for closing a meet ing in North Carolina. (The committee will probably address growth, which could be con strued to mean business and industry expansion. And the University might try to acquire land residents own as part of the Master Plan. Discussing tlikt in a meeting would be discussing real estate acquisitions. But that argu ment is shaky, and the entire business of: the committee will most likely not be about business expansion. ■ But with the wide variety of issues affecting town-gown relations, I doubt thjit’s all the committee will discuss, mien a meeting is closed, the mem bers can discuss only issues related to the issue they used to close the meeting. Setting aside the legal issues, if the committee’s purpose is to improve the relationship between the town and the University, closing the meetings seems self-defeating. Communication between to*n and University officials might improve, but most members of both communities will be left in the dark. Committee member Jonathan Hpwes, special assistant to the chancel lor,, told the DTH, “I think it was the expectation of the chancellor and the mayor that the subject matter would be sufficiently sensitive that the matters would be best discussed in private.” The best way to discuss sensitive issues is openly. I want to know what’s so sensitive about the subjects of these meetings that Chapel Hill residents anft the University community can’t be|trusted to be in on them. Council member Joyce Brown is not a member of the committee, but sh? supports its formation. But Brown told the DTH she opposes the fact that thi committee is being proposed as a clcjsed committee. And I hope committee members stayt to agree with her. They might not lose a lawsuit, but they could lose pub licconfidence. t [ Columnist Erin Mendell can be reached at mendell@email.unc.edu. Cartoonist Draws a Crowd for Slide Show By Scott Brittain Staff Writer Students, professors and anyone else who wanted to hear a Pulitzer Prize-win ning editorial cartoonist had their chance Thursday night in a comedy-filled pro gram sponsored by the Park Foundation. The third Roy H. Park Lecture Series brought satirist Doug Marlette to Carroll Hall, where he spoke to an audience of about 200 people. Marlette is best known for his syndicated comic strip “Kudzu” and his political cartoons that are printed in hundreds of newspapers. Marlette kept the mood in the lecture hall lively with a slide show displaying several strips of “Kudzu” and numerous examples of his political cartoons. “The thing that was attractive to me about political cartoons is that you can express something without saying any thing,” Marlette said. Hu 31 1 jjpKjrggi i "'IQS** i ! I , .0 Ipi HHH ; l| jH HL iMfr • : I ’ll Hk JH, **Ejf ip- r j! ...... . DTH/EMII.Y SCHNURE Jacquelyn Gist plays with a Slinky, one of the many toys she keeps in her Nash Hall office to make students feel more comfortable. Gist works both as a University counselor and as a Carrboro alderman. Nurturer by Day, 'Ass-Kicker' by Night By Stefanie Wowchik Staff Writer When seeingjacquelyn Gist in her UNC office, one might be surprised to find out she is both a career counselor and town official. Flamingo and palm tree lights illuminate the walls of her office in Nash Hall. And next to them hangs a large Squirrel Nut Zippers poster. Annual Festivals Provide Variety of Halloween Fun By Jamila Vernon Staff Writer Halloween festivities including scary storytelling, costume contests and a car nival full of games will kick off in the Carrboro community this weekend. Starting at 5:30 p.m. today, Weaver Street Market will hold its annual “Ghost Stories”on the lawn. This event, which has been held annually for more than seven years, will feature five music, a costume contest and scary storytelling. Local musician Tim Stambaugh will kick off the event and play music throughout the night. “The musicians (for the events) are V,/ : i +, Y- ’iW • v . JO Dm, EMILY SCHNURE Comedian and social activist Dick Gregory, who was involved in the civil rights movement, speaks Thursday night in Memorial Hall. University & City One of the best examples of this is the shutde Challenger’s explosion in 1986. Marlette created a cartoon for a special afternoon edition of The Charlotte Observer that featured a bald eagle looking toward a star-filled sky with a tear coming from its eye. The paper had to print 70,000 copies of that one car toon to fill special requests. Marlette also draws cartoons about topics such as sports, the death penalty, prescription drugs and politics. He said there are several politicians that he enjoys drawing frequently, such as Sen. Jesse Helms, R-N.C., whom he has depicted as a pickle, a gallstone and “all kinds of lower life-forms.” Once, when Helms was adamantly speaking against the formation of the Martin Luther Kingjr. holiday, Marlette drew a picture of a calendar turned to April 1 with Helms proclaiming it as April Fools’ Day. Her desk is covered with many child- . hood gadgets such as a Slinky and hood gadg ( \jQIV-. bright! Ai V Joral Gist bright bouncy balls. And Gist will be the first to b admit that she can’t coordi- l nate her daily attire, fc Although her office and outfits might be dec- 1 orated uniquely, what makes r Gist stand out is the work she does through her two occupations. incredibly eager,” said Cat Moleski, a media specialist for Weaver Street Market. “Stambaugh is planning on hav ing seasonal music and a puppeteer as part of his act.” Moleski said the costume contest is always a popular event among kids up to 10 years old. “Costumes run the gamut from princess to Dracula, but this year we think we might get some Harry Potters,” Moleski said. Costumes will be judged in the cate gories of most original, funniest and scariest. The two judges will be employ ees of the Weaver Street Market. Karen Berry, a recreation supervisor of the Carrboro Recreation Department, Marlette said he normally does not back down from an issue, but he does have a harder ti ie with certain topics. “Abortion is ton a because Ih; e ery conflicted feelings about that,” Marlette said. “We live in s ime when you can’t talk about certain ti ngs. If you say some thing about race then you’re a racist, or if you say something about homosexuals then you are a homophobe.” He said his views expressed in his drawings are usually not reflections of his opinions of the people. “I like everybody, but with my car toons I’m interested in the policies ad activities and not the people,” Marlette said. “I like being mean. In daylight-sav ing time, I can be mean an extra hour.” Marlette was bom in Greensboro and attended Florida State University. He began his journalism career with The See MARLETTE, Page 6 Gist works as a counselor with University Career Services by day and as a Carrboro alderman by night. And her work has given her a love for both the University and the surrounding area. Gist helped start the homeless shelter in Chapel Hill and recendy won the Office of the Provost Public Service Award for her See GIST, Page 6 said the storytelling will be done by teacher and writer Milbre Burch. “We always have a hard time finding good storytellers,” Moleski said. “Milbre is a wonderful storyteller.” Burch will be interpreting stories by various writers and draw on world folk tales and legends as the basis for her sto ries. Carrboro Recreation Department will follow this event on Tuesday with its Halloween Carnival. It will feature a range of games and activities from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m and will be held at the Carrboro Town Commons. “It’s a safer alternative to trick or treating ... we ordered all the candy so we know where it’s coming from," said Comedian Stirs Laughter, Thought By Tori Kiser Staff Writer Laughter filled Memorial Hall on Thursday night as guest comedian Dick Gregory spoke about family values, drug usage and politics with a bawdy flair. Gregory, who recendy released his memoir, “Callous on My Soul," was wel comed to the stage with a standing ova tion. He then garnered roaring laughter after opening his speech with a personal anecdote about an accidental energy boost. “I just realized I popped my Viagra pill instead of my ginseng,” Gregor)’ said. I , 3 \ DTH ARIEL SHUMAKER Cartoonist Doug Marlette, best know for his comic strip "Kudzu," shows his work during the Park Lecture Series in Carroll Hall. Moeser Addresses UNC Master Plan At Annual Forum Chancellor James Moeser pledged to step up efforts to keep employees aware of the "what and why" of campus construction. By Stacey Geyer Staff Writer Chancellor James Moeser and other campus officials field ed questions concerning the University’s future from employ ees in the chilly confines of Gerrard Hall on Thursday. The questions posed by the audience ranged from the Native American presence on campus to salary concerns -but the meeting was mainly focused on UNC’s Master Plan and University finances. The Master Plan is a blueprint for future campus develop ment that was first presented by the late Chancellor Michael Hooker in 1998. The Final Master Plan was announced to University and town officials in September and will be up for approval by the Board of Trustees in January. Moeser began the annual Employee Forum Community Meeting noting the irony of discussing the impact of the Master Plan and the $3.1 billion higher education bond ref erendum in on? of the University’s oldest and most dilapidat ed buildings. The bond, which will give the University about SSOO mil lion to repair and renovate its facilities if it passes in the November elections, was Moeser’s focus for the first half hour of the meeting. He stressed how the bond referendum’s passage would help achieve his goal of making UNC the best public university in the nation. Moeser told the audience he plans to couple the funding of an approved bond package with a major private fund-rais ing campaign over the next seven or eight years. “I want to triple (the bond’s funding) in terms of private support." Moeser also discussed how some of the bond money could be put to use in funding future physical improvements on campus such as those presented in the Master Plan’s blue prints. “(The plan) is a 50-year build-out, and none of us will see these buildings unless we come back reincarnated in another See MOESER, Page 6 Berry. “It (also) builds on that sense of community." Berry said the events are geared toward children from preschool to high school. “It (will have) carnival booths with games appropriate for different ages,” Berry said. Berry said 200 to 300 people usually attend the event, and she expects that the same amount will attend this year. There will be an area specifically des ignated for teens, Berry said. Activities include eye-putt, which is a version of miniature golf, where the participants uses a fake eyeball instead of a golf ball, and dance contest. “Monster Mash music is played and His visit was sponsored by The Sonja H. Stone Black Cultural Center and WNCUJazz Radio 90.7. The event was a fund-raiser for the cultural center, which is expect ed to break ground starting in April 2001. Gregory began using his comedic skills during his military career in the 19505. After he was discharged from the mil itary, he gained national attention while performing before a predominantly white audience at Chicago’s Playboy Club in 1961. Audiences have said Gregory is as much an activist as a comedian because of his talent for making people think as well as laugh. Friday, October 27, 2000 participants are to show off their moves,” Berry said. The carnival will also include an edu cational component that includes Merlin and his Owl and The Bat Cave. Berry said a paid performer will play the role of Merlin and talk about why owls are magical. “Halloween lends itself well to education about history,” Berry said. “Things that are fun and educational are always a good idea.” The town of Chapel Hill will close off Franklin Street to prepare for its annual Halloween Promenade, which drew tens of thousands of revelers last year. The City Editor can be reached at citydesk@unc.edu. After he achieved his success as a per former, Gregor)’ made a move in American politics. He unsuccessfully ran for mayor of Chicago in 1966 and for U.S. president in 1968. Gregory also was active in civil rights and anti-apartheid movements. “Integration is here, and somewhere - I don’t know where -but a black woman done taught a white woman the grits recipe!” Gregory said. Gregory gave many statistics in his performance, which contained informa tion on such issues as teenage pregnan cy and divorce rates. He also attacked the topic of school See GREGORY. 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