VOLUME 112, ISSUE 36
Trustees to tackle high-rise halls
BOARD WILL DECIDE FATE OF RESIDENCES ON SOUTH CAMPUS
BY MEGAN SEROW
STAFF WRITER
University officials soon will
decide the fate of four South
Campus residence halls and how to
deal with possibly displacing thou
sands of students.
During a special meeting
Thursday, members of the UNC
Board of Trustees will discuss a
range of choices, including possibly
demolishing the original Craige,
Eringhaus, Hinton James and
Morrison residence halls.
Drug
dealing
affects
district
Residents wary
of own neighbors
BY EMILY VASQUEZ
STAFF WRITER
Police had watched 88-year-old
Lucressia Fearrington’s home at
602 Nunn Street in the Northside
community for years.
Since 2000, approximately 15
arrests were made at her address,
and police received more than 25
written complaints.
The residence was considered a
center for drugs, but police lacked
cause for a search warrant and
Fearrington refused them entry.
Police said Fearrington, who is
confined to a wheelchair, gave her
trust to a group of young men who
provided her with minimal care
but used her home to sell drugs.
On April 6 when a Pittsboro
man violated the release condi
tions of his bond by entering the
residence, Fearrington agreed to
let police enter her home.
“She authorized a consent to
search her home because she did
n’t believe those young folks hang
ing out there were doing anything
bad,” Chapel Hill police officer Leo
Vereen said.
Police discovered rocks of crack
cocaine and marijuana in the
house and subsequently issued
Fearrington a court summons to
face the felony charge of main
taining a dwelling to keep or sell
controlled substances.
The incident paints a bleak pic
ture for the Northside community,
contributing to its reputation for
drug-related crime.
But residents of the community
and police say the charge against
Fearrington is not indicative of
simply the presence of drug activ
ity.
Instead, they say, it illustrates
the broader effect that the drug
trade has had on the community.
Like Fearrington, they say, most
residents of Northside are not
involved with the drugs that sur-
SEE NORTHSIDE, PAGE 4
Ballantine resigns from N.C. Senate
BY CHRIS COLETTA
ASSISTANT STATE & NATIONAL EDITOR
RALEIGH Patrick
Ballantine, one of the seven
Republican candidates for gover
nor, resigned Monday from the
N.C. Senate in what he called “a
bold move” aimed squarely at the
Executive Mansion.
The Senate Republican leader
announced in front of the
Legislative Building that he is step
ping down from the seat he has held
since December 1994, citing cam
paign needs and a desire to be fair to
his constituents and colleagues.
“It is my obligation to the North
Carolina Senate and to the people
of my district to leave behind col
leagues and allies and the office
INSIDE
END OF THE ROAD
Senior Aletha Green, who was profiled by the DTH
four years ago, school and sports PAGE 3
Serving the students and the University community since 1893
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Following presentations of the
UNC Master Plan and the housing
master plan, trustees will hear pre
sentations on how University
administrators could fulfill housing
goals, specifically regarding the
high-rise residence halls.
Christopher Payne, director of
housing and residential education,
said he anticipates that the BOT
will decide on the fate of the resi
dence halls early next month.
BOT members will choose
among three options for the resi
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Thomas Thekkekandam, who acted as the groom in Sangam's mock Hindu wedding Monday afternoon, rides up to the steps of South
Building on a white horse as mock-family members dance around him. The event was planned to raise awareness of South Asian culture.
MOCK WEDDING
SHARES CULTURE
Event hosted by Sangam sheds light on festive South Asian tradition
BY LAUREN HARRIS
STAFF WRITER
Polk Place looked more like India on
Monday night than a colonial-style college
campus complete with a live white horse
and traditional wedding mandap.
Members of Sangam, UNC’s South Asian
awareness group, held a mock Hindu wed
ding on the steps of South Building to edu
cate people on one of the most colorful of
South Asian ceremonies.
More than 100 people witnessed the
event, which Sangam President Sunil
Nagaraj said was intended to outdo Sangam
Nite in terms of education. “This is pure,
unadulterated South Asian culture,” he said.
The ceremony began with the arrival of
the groom, played by Sangam member
and position that I have held and
treasured for the past decade,”
Ballantine said.
The New Hanover County law
maker’s move was not entirely
unexpected. Ballantine told col
leagues Thursday and Friday that
he was preparing to step down as
minority leader though, at the time,
it was unclear whether that meant
he would leave the Senate as well.
Ballantine’s resignation after 10
years as a senator means that the
chamber’s Republicans now must
pick a leader for this year’s short
session of the General Assembly,
which begins May 10. The Senate
caucus’s Thursday meeting now
likely will include such talks.
Furthermore, Republicans in
www.daiEytaiheel.com
dence halls. They will choose from
proposing no action, proposing
limited renovation or recommend
ing the demolition of the residence
halls.
“Each BOT member has a per
sonal preference,” board Chairman
Richard “Stick” Williams said. “I
lived in Eringhaus all four years,
and I have no personal problem
with renovations, but others don’t
like it.”
Housing officials had favored
renovation plans last month, but
Thomas Thekkekandam, on horseback in
the midst of a procession of his “family.”
Shortly afterward, the bride, played by
Surina Jindal, made her grand entrance like
royalty down a red-carpeted aisle on a chair
carried by men from her “family.”
The bride, clad in a traditional red and
white sari with glittering gold embroidery,
joined her groom under the wedding tent,
or “mandap,” where they remained for most
of the pre-ceremony.
The wedding was led by Hindu priest
Pravin Shukla, who translated his Sanskrit
prayers and hymns and explained the sig
nificance of each portion of the ceremony.
As an integral part of the pre-ceremony,
the bride and groom exchanged flower gar
lands, which symbolized their acceptance of
Ballantine’s 9th District now must
convene, likely April 29, to pick his
successor. Ballantine said it’s
“probable” that Woody White, his
law partner and a candidate for the
9th District seat, will get tapped,
but he stressed that he is not
endorsing anybody in the process.
Though speculation has centered
on Deputy Republican Leader Jim
Forrester of Gaston County as
Ballantine’s possible replacement as
minority leader, Ballantine declined
to comment on the issue.
For now, Ballantine said, he
wants to focus on taking the time
he would have spent in the legisla
ture to bring his message to all
parts of the state.
“We’re going to go to every nook
Payne said Monday that he will not
be making a recommendation to
the BOT.
Estimates and plans for each
option have been drafted for
Morrison Residence Hall, but
Payne said the decision could apply
to any or all of the original South
Campus residence halls.
Payne said current plans for the
renovation of Morrison Residence
Hall would cost $24 million. The
plans would make Morrison
unavailable for housing between
each other in marriage.
The main wedding ceremony opened
with the priest placing the “garland of vic
tory” over the bride and groom, to signify
their bond in marriage as well as the bond
ing of their families. “When you get married,
you may find yourself with 50 new relatives,”
the priest said.
The pair then walked around the sacred
fire, which in this case was made of alu
minum foil. They did this four times, with
each revolution symbolizing religion,
wealth, family and children and liberation.
During the last lap, the bride’s brothers
placed a rock in front of the groom’s foot for
him to “climb,” symbolizing life’s troubles.
SEE WEDDING, PAGE 4
and cranny of North Carolina,
from the mountains to the sea and
everywhere in between.”
He will have to move quickly to
do so. The state’s primary, which
was delayed by the N.C. State Board
of Elections to let new district maps
weave their way through the court
system, will be held July 20, only a
few weeks before this year’s short
session is expected to wrap up.
It is unclear to what degree
Ballantine’s resignation will affect
the race. Ferrel Guillory, director
of UNC’s Program on Southern
Politics, Media and Public Life,
said the senator’s move won’t alter
the election’s course significantly.
SEE BALLANTINE, PAGE 4
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A RELIGIOUS UNDERTAKING
A Methodist church meets at South Point Cinemas
to provide a unique worship experience PAGE 5
2005 and 2007-
But he said that after Thursday’s
meeting, things could all change.
If demolition is the chosen
course of action, one possible
choice would be to construct new
residence halls, Payne said. Such a
project would take two years of
planning, one year of demolition
and two years of new construction.
The new residence halls might be
similar to the recently constructed
south campus residence halls, or
they might be apartment-style.
If any change is proposed to
Morrison Residence Hall, about
1,000 beds would be unavailable
an 11 m
1
DTH/JUSTIN SMITH
Patrick Ballantine, a Republican candidate for governor, and his wife, Lisa,
announce in a press conference his resignation from the N.C. Senate.
WEATHED
TODAY Mostly cloudy, H 84, L 58
WEDNESDAY Mostly cloudy, H 83, L 58
THURSDAY Mostly sunny, H 86, L 58
TUESDAY, APRIL 20, 2004
for the two year renovation period.
Williams said a possibility to off
set the loss of rooms would be to
open Odum Village to undergrad
uate students.
An e-mail survey also was dis
tributed by housing department
officials last week to gather more
input from students on the housing
issues. Results are expected back in
time for the BOT’s decision.
Although thousands of rooms
would be at least temporarily dis
placed through renovations, Payne
said, he is not overly concerned
SEE HOUSING, PAGE 4
Fee hike
to boost
transit
program
Safe Ride plans to
add eastbound route
BYTORRYE JONES
STAFF WRITER
Funds generated through a $2 per
year student fee increase will provide a
new route to the Safe Ride Program and
could return Thursday night services
next fall.
The transit fee increase, passed by the
UNC-system Board of Governors in
March, now allocates about $50,400 to
the student-run program each year.
The organization no longer will
receive funds from student government
or other private organizations.
“Last year, we had a budget of about
half of (the proposed) one. It was never
certain. We got a lot of money from pri
vate organizations,” said Adam Ricketts,
treasurer of Safe Ride.
The proposed funds will allow Safe
Ride to create an additional route that
targets riders in the greater eastern
Chapel Hill area and included stops at
the Finley Golf Course, Glen Lennox,
University Mall and Meadowmont.
Next year’s service will run Fridays and
Saturdays from 11:15 p.m. to 2:30 a.m.
“Adding this new route will provide
more service for more students on cam
pus on Friday and Saturday nights,” said
Safe Ride Director Alex Smith.
Despite the additional funding, the
organization still is debating whether it
should return services to Thursday night.
Budget cuts from student government’s
Safety and Security Committee forced
program officials to cut Thursday night
services in February. Safe Ride received
SB,OOO through student government last
fall and $2,500 this spring.
Anup Dashputre, Safe Ride’s senior
adviser, said that the decision to return
Thursday night services will be based on
anew contract signed in August between
Safe Ride and Chapel Hill Transit, which
provides the bus service.
“In a perfect world, the number of rid
ers we have would speak for itself, but the
cost of Chapel Hill Transit might go up
because of high gas prices these days,” he
SEE SAFE RIDE, PAGE 4
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