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Free Failin'
Army cadets get
a shot of adrenaline.
See Page 6A
Retroactive Charges Likely in Pending Tuition Deal
By Alex Kaplun
State & National Editor
State and university leaders seem cer
tain that students will have to pay even
more in tuition for the fall 2001 semes
ter, but ques
tions remain
about who will
pay, when and
how much.
A compro-
SBP Justin Young,
Student Leaders
Denounce Hikes
See Page 3B
mise was in the works Monday night
that could bring together differing state
Senate and House tuition proposals that
Growing Pains
As the 2001-02 school year gets under way, the University community braces for a storm of construction projects aimed at helping the campus absorb
a projected enrollment boom. But campus growth presents a number of obstacles for the University, obstacles we all will face in the coming months.
By Lizzie Brfyer
University Editor
No pain, no gain.
That’s the message UNC officials have been trying to sell
students as the year begins against the backdrop of planned
construction projects and missed deadlines.
As UNC undertakes newly intensified renovation projects
in several areas of campus, the cam
pus community is struggling to rec
oncile its desire for long-term growth
and improvement with the short-term
discomforts that construction brings.
UNC students will face even more
construction in coming years as the
campus’s share of the $3.1 billion higher education bond pays
for new development and capital improvements.
The University also plans to build extensively as part of its
Master Plan, a blueprint for campus growth in the next 50
years, which is facing scrutiny from Chapel Hill officials.
But for now, four major projects - construction of new
South Campus residence halls, renovation of the Student
Union, renovation of the Undergraduate Library and
improvement to the hot water heating system on North
Campus - are causing immediate difficulty for students.
South Campus Residence Halls
For many freshmen arriving on campus for the first time,
die first sight that greeted them was that of exposed brick and
beams - in the-front yards of their new homes.
Construction began on four new South Campus residence
halls in November 2000 and is scheduled to be finished July 10.
But despite the fact that the project is proceeding as
planned, the construction is still causing headaches for many
South Campus residents. Christopher Payne, director of hous
ing and residential education, says the inconvenience for stu
dents is unfortunate but unavoidable.
“We are really committed to providing a bed for every
undergraduate head, but that won’t happen without the abili
ty to build new housing and renovate existing housing,” he
said. “This is a very exciting time at Carolina, and it’s impor
tant to realize that there will be inconveniences that go along
with that, but it’s also important to mitigate them.”
Payne said the continuing construction might create more
hassles for South Campus residents, including utility inter
ruptions, noise and dust. The basketball court at Hinton James
Residence Hall also is closed, although members of the hous
ing department expect it to reopen it soon.
Cheryl Stout, assistant director of parking services, said the
construction also has claimed some student parking spaces.
Payne said members of the housing department will attempt
to address student concerns. “At some point, it’s the legacy of the
See CONSTRUCTION, Page 9A
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Freshman Meredith Webb shares a former study lounge
in Ruffin Residence Hall with two roommates.
No smallest atom of our moral, physical or mental structure can stand still a year.
Mark Twain
I
budget writers from both chambers have
been trying to reconcile since June.
Sen. Howard Lee, D-Orange, who
chairs the Senate Appropriations
Committee, said budget writers reached
a compromise Monday that calls for a 9
percent across-the-board tuition increase
for all students in the UNC system.
That proposal would raise in-state
undergraduate tuition at UNC-Chapel
Hill by about S2OO and out-of-state
undergraduate tuition by about SI,OOO.
The compromise discussed Monday
would also increase tuition 9 percent for
graduate and professional students.
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State Regulations
Further Delay
Construction
See Page 15A
DTH/KARA ARNDT
Phillip Long, Jessica Lowdermilk and Katie Fox walk past construction at the Undergraduate Library.
Piles of bricks and other building materials are a common sight around campus.
Deadline Pressure
The timeline shows the progress of four major renovation projects now under way on campus, the deadlines for several of which have been pushed back. For example,
Phase 1 of the Student Union renovation is presently running six months behind schedule. Two additional phases of Union renovation will follow Phase 1.
Union Phase I r—. B -B" B 1 1 B IB B □ □ "B
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Library Renovations 9 'Q
SOURCE: DEPT. OF FAGUTIES AND SERVICES .AND DEPT. OF HOUSING GRAPHIC BY KRISTEN HARDY
Serving the students and the University community since 1893 1
Violator
ALE stings underage drinkers
in Operation Back to School.
See Page 13A
The tuition increase compromise, or
any other tuition increase proposal that
lawmakers consider, would be retroac
tive, meaning students would later have
to pay additional money for the fall
semester that starts today.
In late June, both the House and the
Senate passed budget legislation that
included two drastically different tuition
increase proposals.
The Senate version of the budget
included a 4 percent tuition increase
approved by the Board of Governors
last year.
On top of the BOG-approved
Joyner Opens to Alleviate Tight Housing
By Karey Wutkowski
Assistant University Editor
The sight of homeless students forced to
hole up in residence hall lounges has become
a thing of the past, despite an increased
demand for on-campus housing this year.
Due to a spike in freshman enrollment
and a greater number of on-campus students
renewing their housing contracts, the
demand for on-campus housing considerably
exceeded the roughly 6,500 available spaces.
But Christopher Payne, director of
housing and residential education, said he
did not want to alleviate the problem by
using lounges to house students waiting for
Summer Catch
Tar Heels gain experience
in summer league.
See Page 1B
increase, the Senate also called for a 5 per
cent tuition increase for in-state students.
The House proposal eliminates all in-state
tuition increases and raises out-of-state
tuition at UNC-CH by about $2,000.
All of the tuition proposals are also on
top of the S3OO increase that the BOG
approved two years ago for UNC-CH
and N.C. State University.
Lee said budget writers are working
on all aspects of the budget, including
the tuition increase, adding that a final
amount for the tuition increase could be
set by the end of the week.
No matter which proposal goes
their permanent assignments.
Last year, about 80 students moved into
lounges around campus before being reas
signed to permanent rooms.
“It’s not a good experience for those stu
dents living in lounges, and it’s not a good
experience for those campus communities
that can’t use their lounges,” Payne said.
And while some lounges have been
converted to regular student rooms, the
Department of Housing and Residential
Education mosdy looked to Joyner
Residence Hall, which was scheduled to
close this fall for renovations.
The housing department had already
started painting the residence hall this sum-
V
through, UNC-CH students will receive
another bill for the fall 2001 semester.
Lee said individual universities might
be given the option of how to charge stu
dents, but he said he expects most uni
versities would simply charge students
retroactively for the fall semester.
UNC-CH Financial Aid Director
Shirley Ort said the retroactive tuition
increase could be difficult for students to
absorb.
Ort said the bill mailed out to students
in July included the 4 percent BOG
approved tuition increase and the S3OO
increase approved last summer but noth
mer, but officials decided to push back the
closing date to January and fill Joyner’s 170
beds with freshmen who submitted their
housing applications late.
Payne said Joyner will function like any
other co-ed campus community, but as
spaces open in other residence halls, students
will be placed in permanent assignments.
“They can move in and setde in,” Payne
said. “We’ll give them a couple days and
help them transport their belongings when
they get their reassignment.”
And while there is usually a large num
ber of housing contract cancellations at the
See HOUSING, Page 9A
Weather
Today: Mostly Sunny; H 84, L 64
Wednesday: Sunny; H 85, L 67
Thursday: T-storms; H 88, L 65
ing else. Ort said bills for additional tuition
increases will be mailed out shortly alter
the General Assembly passes a budget
She added that while her office has
been able to provide enough aid for all
students under the bills they sent out this
summer, any increases beyond that,
especially a large increase in out-of-state
tuition, would be difficult to cover.
“We’re in pretty good shape right
now, but any significant increase could
be difficult for us to cover,” Ort said.
Ort said the school would readjust the
See RETROACTIVE, Page 9A
UNC, Town
Aim to Heal
Relationship
Following a year of tension
between the University and
Chapel Hill, the future for
the two remains fragile.
By Keliie Dixon
City Editor
It’s what some might call a vicious
cycle.
Each year, UNC’s enrollment rises -
a phenomenon that has forced the
University to create a blueprint for cam
pus growth called die Master Plan.
This plan, spawned by projected
enrollment increases, has put immediate
pressure on the town and its residents.
The pressure peaked in May when
Chancellor James Moeser gave the go
ahead for N.C. Senate leaders to include
in the Senate budget proposal legisla
tion exempting roughly 12 percent of
the town’s total area from Chapel Hill’s
zoning ordinances. The legislation was
removed just days later -but the
maneuver still has had significant impli
cations for town-gown relations.
The move seemed like a power play
to many town officials and residents,
adding stress to the relationship
between town and University officials.
“The strong-arm tactic just doesn’t sit
well with the community and the citi
zens,” said Chapel Hill Town Council
member Lee Pavao.
But Moeser wrote off the implica
tions that tension during the summer
will have on future town-gown relations.
“A lot of that is a matter of percep
tion," he said. “We made some mistakes
along the way. There was a lot more
good than trouble.”
Chapel Hill Mayor Rosemary
Waldorf, who sat on a town-gown com
mittee formed last year, said the Master
Plan will benefit both the town and the
University but added that she still sup
ports a proposal that would be more
conscious of residents’ concerns.
“I’ve said many times that I wish the
University would have developed a
Master Plan that did not intrude into a
neighborhood," she said.
Bruce Runberg, associate vice chan
cellor for facility services, noted the ten
sion but said he thinks the town-gown
relationship benefited both groups. “It’s a
very important issue and each side has
had different responsibilities, and I think
all in aff, particularly over the last several
months, it’s been a team effort,” he said.
Runberg said the process will help
facilitate future conversations. “There’s
a lot of give-and-take in the process
already, and we hope the process con
tinues,” he said. “The more difficult
stages of this have yet to come."
Despite the events of the summer,
Waldorf emphasized the importance of
the town working with the University in
the future.
“There has been disappointment, but
we have to deal with it and move on.”
The City Editor can be reached
atcitydesk9unc.edu.
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