VOLUME 115, ISSUE 56
Extra
land
tax in
works
Sales tax other
option on table
BY TED STRONG
SENIOR WRITER
County officials are debating
the best way to increase taxes as a
way to get extra funds.
A pair of Orange County com
missioners said Tuesday night that
they support a real estate transfer
tax for the county, rather than an
increase in sales tax.
And several members of the
Board of County Commissioners
expressed worries about pass
ing the referendum necessary to
implement the new tax.
“(The towns) need to come for
ward and help support anew rev
enue source if we’re going to put
it to the public,” board chairman
Moses Carey Jr. said.
Because of new state law, each
county government is now allowed
to request, via referendum, a .4
percent real estate transfer tax or
a .25 cent sales tax increase.
Board vice chairman Barry Jacobs
and commissioner Mike Nelson said
during the meeting that they would
prefer the transfer tax.
But Carey said a final decision
on the tax shouldn’t be made until
sometime in the fall, so county
and town officials can talk about
the issue. A public hearing on the
issue is scheduled for Aug. 30.
Carey also said he wants more
time to communicate with voters
in general.
“A month and a half is not ...
enough time, in my opinion, to suffi
ciently educate the public,” he said.
County staff have looked at
holding the referendums on either
the Nov. 6 municipal election or
the presidential primary, which
will be May 6.
If any referendums are approved,
the transfer tax could take effect as
soon as Jan. 1 or July 1, and the sales
tax could come into use as soon as
April 1 or Sept 1,2008.
Nelson said that he thinks the
May election would work bet
ter because there will be a bigger
turnout with a presidential race
and that the seniors who typically
dominate municipal races tend to
be wary of new taxes.
“I think it’s a little more demo
cratic,” he said of the May contest.
County officials can put refer
endums on either or both taxes
SEE TAX, PAGE 7
Wi-Fi updates plug in libraries
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DTH/ALUE MULUN
Freshman biology major Jonathan Young studies in Davis library. 'lt's
quiet here. I'm going to use the wireless all the time,' Young said.
university | page 10
MONEY TALKS
University leaders begin
discussing student-fee hikes on
the first day of classes. A 3.6
percent increase is being
proposed.
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UNC will fix diploma errors
BY WHITNEY KISLING
UNIVERSITY EDITOR
Almost 2,000 UNC diplomas have
been distributed with incorrect infor
mation on them, and the University
has agreed to reprint them, absorbing
the cost.
Those undergraduate students who
received a degree from the College of
Arts and Sciences in May have been
sent letters informing them that their
diplomas contain inaccurate informa
tion about the dean of their college.
Instead of the title “Dean,” under
“Were always so saddened when twins don’t room together.
We’re bestfriends.” beverly knight, UNC TWIN
n T*s *jA
DTH/TIMOTHY REESE
Twins Samantha and Sierra Moore read a magazine together in their apartment. Many twins live together
during college, explaining that they encounter fewer conflicts with their siblings than with other roommates.
State | page 6
WILTING IN THE HEAT
Residents with a usually
resplendent garden at their
Gimghoul Road homes are
suffering from the drought—
and so is everyone else.
Serving the students and the University community since 1893
www.dailytarheel.com
Madeline Levine’s name, the diplo
mas are printed with “Dean of the
Professional School’ —a school that
doesn’t exist at the University.
“This was a fairly small mistake, but
it was a large error,” said University
Registrar Alice Poehls, whose depart
ment coordinates diplomas.
Former Student Body TVeasurer Anisa
Mohanty alerted Poehls to the error by
e-mail last week, and the registrar’s office
sent letters Friday to all 1,896 graduates
who have diplomas with errors.
The letter states that UNC will reprint
BY KATY DOLL
ASSISTANT UNIVERSITY EDITOR
Davis Library has always been
a haven for serious studying, but
now it will serve as a Wi-Fi hot
spot, too.
“In Davis Library, we had origi
nally only eight wireless access
points for the entire library,” said
Jim Gogan, director of networking.
“We now have 99”
The Undergraduate Library also
received a wireless update, with the
addition of 13 new wireless access
points, bringing the library’s total
access points to 17.
The updates totalled $125,000
and were completed three weeks
ago after nine months of planning
and installation, officials said.
“It’s not something that is inex
pensive or something we under
the diplomas for free and asks that the
incorrect diplomas be sent back.
“Initially I’m sure that they sort of
didn’t know exactly how to respond,”
Mohanty said. “And the fact that she
e-mailed me back with a finalized plan
that evening that was a really appro
priate and timely response.”
According to die registrar’s Web site,
4,756 UNC students graduated in May,
giving the college the largest percent
age of graduates.
The diplomas should be ready within
about two weeks, Poehls said, noting that
took lightly,” Gogan said.
For the past several years stu
dent government members have
requested an increase in wireless
access in the libraries.
The libraries were noted as areas
of high usage marking them for
more immediate updates.
Plans are in the works to expand
Wi-Fi to other high-usage build
ings, but any renovations depend
on funding.
“Jim Gogan does have a plan
on how to do it for the whole
campus,” said John Streck, asso
ciate vice chancellor for telecom
munications.
“We will continue the execution
of that plan, but it depends on
funding, and funding is tight.”
SEE WIRELESS, PAGE 7
features | pa#e s
FIRST-DAY JITTERS
Remember your first day of
class at UNC? The DTH
follows a freshman to see
how she fared.
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 22, 2007
UNC paid to rush the new order.
“That’s really all we can do,” she said.
“The University is simply going to try
to get the right ones to them.”
When graduates request their diplo
mas to be reprinted because of an error
on the students’ part, the University
usually charges a $25 fee.
The new order will cost UNC
between $3,000 and $4,000 which
the registrar’s office will foot.
“It’s expensive, but it’s got to be
SEE DIPLOMA, PAGE 7
Sharing
genes and
one room
Twins still live together at UNC
BYWILLHAUCKS
STAFF WRITER
For the Formeister twins, the notion of being identical
transcends appearance.
Sure, their physical resemblance is undeniable: They’re both
stocky and broad-shouldered, and they have the same propen
sity for telling long stories that trail off into ringing laughter.
But for the second year in a row, Marc and Eric will share
something more living space.
And the Formeisters aren’t alone. Marc and Eric are just
one set of twins living together at the University this year.
“Being an identical twin is a different kind of bond,” Marc
Formeister said.
Because they grew up together, the two seniors have simi
lar living habits and a strong connection that wouldn’t be
possible between strangers, Marc Formeister said.
The two didn’t room together when they transferred to
UNC in their sophomore year, Eric Formeister said.
But bad experiences with other roommates prompted the
decision.
“Your friends versus people you can live with— two differ
ent groups of people,” he said.
The two agreed that rooming together made things much
easier, especially because they didn’t have to worry about
roommates with different needs or habits.
“My mom will ask me a question, and my response will be
nearly identical to what he says,” Eric Formeister said.
Samantha Moore, a senior, said the comfort and conve
nience of living with her twin Sierra eased the transition into
college and created an anchor for her relationships at UNC.
“We came from a small town, so we were pretty shy,”
Samantha Moore said. “We only knew a handful of people
coming up here.”
She added that she has 21 years of experience rooming
with her twin.
Sierra Moore said living apart would have been impracti
cal, especially because the twins share everything from cos
metics to clothing.
“It would have been hard to go out and buy a second set of
things,” she said. “When we pick stuff out, I just hold it up to
her to see what it looks like on me.”
SEE TWINS, PAGE 7
School year start
not always smooth
Students share
first-day stories
The first day of classes brought
the traditional mass of Carolina
blue back to the Pit.
Although many were glad to
get back, things didn’t always go
off without a hitch.
Here are a few of their stories:
■ Katherine Key freshman,
biology major
“I walked into my sociology
class and opened a Diet Coke, and
it spewed all over me. It even got
on the floor and the desk. I was at
the very front, too, so everybody
this day in history
AUG. 22. 1998...
Anew oven at Lenoir Dining
Hall catches fire when papers
were left in the oven during
a test of the equipment.
Former interim
dean Madeline
Levine's title
was incorrect
on diplomas.
saw. It was really embarrassing.”
■ Rachel Will sophomore,
journalism and Spanish major
“I went to a class that I was
trying to get into, and no one was
there,” Will said.
Will walked all the way to the
Kenan-Flagler Business School
when she saw that the designat
ed classroom was not being used
for the Social and Behavioral
Science course she was hoping to
get into.
“I think I was just out of the
loop on this one,” she said. “I
think they must have sent out an
e-mail or something.”
SEE FIRST CLASS, PAGE 7
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sports 11
games 11
opinion 14