The Rhythm Project African Ensemble along with the Virginia Arts Festival Rhythm Project director Anthony Hailey performed a social dance of the West African Ewe Tribe, called the “Gahu.”
Students are voicing their opinion about the condition of campus parking, and this time they demand to be heard. It’s no secret that parking is an issue for the Virginia Wesleyan community. It seems not a day goes by when a student or faculty/staff member does not complain about being late for a class or meeting because of the lack of parking. This past week, a large step has been taken by the student body with a petition circulated by the Student Government Association demanding that administrators take steps to improve the parking situation. Director of Security Leo R. Therrien agreed there is a parking problem and said the security office is just as frustrated as students and staff. “I understand the complaints, however, we can only do so much,” he said. Therrien said security is working together with the physical plant, Dean of Students David Buckingham, and Bruce Vaughan in the business office to bring about improvement. But he is also frustrated by the lack of cooperation among students who violate parking regulations.
“It’s like a battle of the wills,” Therrien said, “and we’re the bad guys because they get a ticket.” Realizing student cooperation isn’t the only problem, Therrien said plans are in the works to pave lots, fill in potholes and repaint the lines that have long disappeared from the majority of the lots. Some progress has already been made with the paving of the Bubble lot and the addition of parking blocks in the Village I extension lot this past week. Therrien also reminds students that the opening of the Batten Center in January will create almost 200 additional parking spots. However, many students still are not satisfied with the current situation and are seeking improvements now. Senior Kisha Steele, student advocate, has helped to create a petition, backed by SGA, to initiate action from administrators. She said it’s important for administration to realize this is an important issue among the student body, and while long term plans are needed, there needs to be a temporary solution to the problem. “Until January gets here, they need to do something about parking,” Steele said, primarily referring the Village III parking. “People should not have to park in ditches.” The SGA petition recommends the following to administration: 1) J-Lot behind Boyd Dining Center should be opened to students, at least partially to students to alleviate crowding in the Village III lot; 2) Spaces in Village II (D- Lot) should be shifted to at least accommodate the number of cars registered to students; and 3) if the previous requests cannot be met than the price of parking tickets should be lowered to $5 to $10, until the parking issue is resolved.
The petition was circulated during lunch and dinner this past week and will be brought to the Dean of Students. Steele said parking has always been an issue and it’s time that it be resolved, adding that students are serious and pay too much money to have to put up with this situation. “We are not going to take no for an answer,” she said. “We are not sitting lightly on this.” Residents are not the only ones complaining – one can only imagine the struggles faced by the commuter students who arrive on campus ready for class, only to drive in circles searching for a place to park. No stranger to this situation is Janine Muse, a freshman commuter, who said she has been late for class a few times while searching for parking. Last Monday, Muse was lucky enough to find a place to park, only to find she could not get out of it. “When I came in there was a path, but now all those cars are there. How am I going to get out?,” said Muse, while blocked in the B-lot extension behind Village I. “I’m here all the time and parking is hard.” Muse was glad to see the new parking blocks and was impressed by the attempt to organize the lot, but realizing the parking situation had not improved, she came to the conclusion that maybe students “just don’t care.”
Muse’s conclusion has merit since more than a dozen people still chose to ignore the parking blocks and create their own parking spaces. The ambitious actions of a few drivers to create their own parking places are the one of the major problems with parking, according to Therrien. Therrien said parking along sidewalks and in fire lanes has already resulted in numerous fender benders, and he fears the blatant disregard for parking regulations could become a large safety risk in times of emergency. He added specifically that people cannot get out of lots, handicapped access ramps have been blocked, and roadways are cluttered with cars that would inhibit the presence of an ambulance or fire truck, if needed. He also said that when security personnel is busy monitoring careless parking, they are taken away from their real job of patrolling the campus and residence halls. Disappointed in the situation, but not totally discouraged, Therrien said more than 90 percent of students should be applauded for following the rules and regulations, but added, “it’s that 10 percent that really kills us.” The combination of wanting to avoid walking and needing to park at the exact location of a particular classroom creates creative parking and clutter in the lots. “When there’s no room, you need to go to another lot,” said Therrien. “Somebody’s going to have to do some walking.” It should be noted that on a Monday afternoon while the B-lot behind Village I was jammed with cars in creative parking styles, the lots near the Bubble and the athletic fields had plenty of available spaces.
By COURTNEY COE
In the middle of the afternoon on Oct. 3, two cars were broken into, their windows smashed and some possessions stolen. This occurred 16 days ago, but what has come of it? Nothing. “I’ve been hearing about vandalism for a long time now and it’s always swept under the rug,” said junior Laurie Beth Richter. “Nothing is going to be done about this.” The vandals broke through her window, after an empty purse was in the back seat. “I had changed purses earlier that week and had left it in my car,” Richter said. Richter discovered the damage at around 3:15 p.m., yet security had already come across the seen and reported the incident when they were investigating another act of vandalism. Security had been looking for Richter, but was unable to find her before she discovered the damage herself. Both cars were parked outside Blocker and appeared to have been hit in succession. It is not clear which vehicle was damaged initially. The smashed window of junior Kelly Westphal’s 1997 Ford Aspire was spotted by security and she was pulled out of class around 2:30 p.m. “We were both heading over to my car so he could show me the damage when we saw the glass from the other car’s window,” Westphal said.
She hid her purse under the seat, yet the perpetrators were not dissuaded. Unlike Richter’s empty purse, Wesphal’s was full. “I had all my credit cards, identification and even my social security card inside my purse,” said Westphal. After discovering the loaded purse, the vandals proceeded to use Wesphal’s credit card. “They over-drew my account by $400,” Westphal said. She had almost $900 in the account to begin with. The Virginia Beach Police are involved in both investigations, yet even with the vandals forging Westphal’s signature and using the check card at gas stations, there have been no arrests. While Westphal has put a stop on her credit cards and has called the Credit Bureau to alert her if a new credit card is made in her name, she hasn’t fixed the problems with her account. “I haven’t gotten my money back yet,” Westphal said. “Wachovia told me it might take as long at 90 days before it can be replaced. You can’t cover that, you can’t fix it.”