Miami Hurricane, September 08, 2000

              UM travels to Seattle for first big test
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Rhum Boogey: Student band makes noise
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New lots around the corner
$20 million plan to add garages, lots
By Jessica McNeill
News Editor
After years of student complaints over parking on campus, or the lack thereof, the University of Miami has now developed a plan to make parking quicker and easier, said Sandra Redway, director of the Department of Public Safety and Parking and Transportation Services.
The overall parking management plan—estimated at $20 million— will take place over the next two years.
Currently, there are two phases to the plan, with the end result adding approximately 2,000 spaces on campus and in Ponce de Leon Boulevard parking lots.
Phase one of the plan, which will be started sometime this semester, consists of the construction of two
new Metro lots located on Ponce de Leon.
One lot, between Stanford Drive and Granada Boulevard, will hold 280 spaces and the other, between San Amaro Drive and Sagua Avenue, will hold 78 spaces.
Phase one has gone through all the planning stages within the University and the city of Coral Gables, and construction on the lots should begin before the end of the fall semester, said Redway.
Students wishing to park in the two new lots will face some differences when compared to parking in other lots, though, said Redway.
Redway explained that the two new lots will be considered “discount lots,” i.e., instead of paying the regular parking pass price—$225 for the 2000-2001 school year—students wishing to park only in the Metro
lots will have to pay $151 for the year’s parking.
Students parking in the new Stanford-Granada lot will be able to take the Hurry Cane Shuttle from either of two shuttle centers being built at both ends of the lot, also part of phase one of the plan.
Students parking in the San Amaro-Sagua lot, however, will have to walk across the street to campus buildings or to a Hurry Cane stop.
“It’s actually quite a good idea,” Redway said. “You only pay $151 for the year, and you take a three minute, free shuttle ride to Stanford Circle, and then you’re on campus "
In addition to the construction of new lots and shuttle centers, phase one will also incorporate an increase of shuttle hours and routes.
Express hours will be between 7:30 a.m. and noon, and instead of only two shuttles running later in the day, four shuttles will run until 10 p.m. due to the Law School being open until 9:45 p.m.
The new route for the Stanford-Granada shuttle has already been mapped out, is already located in the shuttle route map and will be brought into effect after the lots are constructed.
Phase two of the plan will add spaces to the already existing Ponce de Leon parking garage. The groundbreaking for two floors, containing approximately 464 spaces should begin in spring 2001, said Redway.
More spaces will also be added to the Mahoney/Pearson lot, and the Pavia lot—located across from the Health Center—to which Redway said levels would be added, making the lot appear more like a garage.
The Mahoney/Pearson garage will go up one level, adding 215 spaces, for a total of 520, while the Pavia garage will add an additional 380 spaces, making its total 580.
See PLAN • Page 2
USA PINEILI / Hurricane Staff
ANY WHICH WAY YOU CAN: One of many who succumbed to the temptation of illegal parking in a crowded campus lot earlier this week.
Students speak out on parking woes
Leniency period over for violators
Matt Brewer
Humc&ne Staff Writer Parking, according to some students and faculty, seems to be one of the largest problems on campus, with no solution in sight.
“Finding a spot anytime after 10 in the morning is just about impossible,” griped Steve McQueen, a junior commuter student.
Students aren’t the only ones vexed by the situation, though. Parking is one of the few issues that has been barred from many faculty
meetings due to the fiery nature of the ensuing discussions.
“Parking will always be a sore subject, it will never be ideal for anyone,” said Sandra Redway, head of parking services. “We’re having a tight situation, but it is not the most dreadful.”
And it is not. Students at Georgetown pay over $1,000 for permits and still have trouble parking.
Last week, even perimeter areas such as the Parking Garage and Metro North and South lots were full by noon, driving many students to double or even triple parking, or driving up onto medians separating rows, said students.
“Last week was a miserable
week," said Redway.
In a proactive move, parking services has leased 200 additional spaces in Coral Gables Lot #42, directly across the street from the Parking Garage at a price of $2 per space.
For all those students who still insist on parking illegally or not purchasing a valid permit, “the courtesy period is over,” said Redway.
Up until Sept. 5, parking services was only giving citations instead of towing (except for when fire lanes were blocked) and issuing orange and yellow warnings instead of writing tickets.
“On any given day we could have
towed 60-100 cars, we have been very lenient,”said Redway; a leniency which has since come to an end.
Anyone cited three or more times for not having a permit will be placed on the “Hot Sheet,” which means they are eligible for towing by parking services. Further, if students do not pay their parking fines, their registration will be blocked next semester until they have all been paid.
If students do receive a ticket they can try to appeal it within 30 days by bringing it before the Parking Advisory Committee, a panel of students, faculty and employees appointed by the provost.
Redway said there is hope for the future of parking at UM, though, and that she and her colleagues “have already begun to implement a successful parking management plan...one that will make UM a model university for parking in the future."
For details on the new parking management plan students can check out the University’s parking Website www.miami.edu/parking, which has detailed info about parking issues, rules and regulations.
Students can also tune in to WVUM in the morning for updates on current parking conditions around campus.
Group helps disabled broaden horizons
Trip helps to empower students
By 0. H. Garcia
Huncane Staff Wrier Junior Silia Herrera participated in a 19-day international leadership exchange program that landed her in the rural mountains of Costa Rica, just one month ago on August 1.
As one of 11 American students from
around the country, Herrera , 20, lived the Costa Rican life to the fullest, without boundaries, even though she has a disability.
“This was beyond my expectations," said Herrera, who came on board thanks to Mobility International USA (MIUSA), a non-profit organization whose mission is to empower people with disabilities through international exchange of information and technical assistance.
“This trip was such an eye-opener for me. It made me realize that I can do any-
thing. Everything is in my grasp,” said Herrera.
Herrera, a political science major, said she hopes the challenge of learning about the laws and lifestyles of a foreign country is an experience that will give her the edge to advance in a governmental position to aide individuals with disabilities around the world.
Susie Grimes, administrative director of MIUSA said the exchange program was a “huge success.”
The program was funded by the
DeWitt Wallace Youth Travel Enrichment Fund, which offers the opportunity to college and high school students who can’t afford to attend on their own
SILIA HERRERA
Grimes said all student delegates saturate themselves with the culture and social values of their surrounding throughout their excursions
The 21-year-old program has taken youths with any number of disabilities to over 73 different countries.
All participants are disabled youths between the ages of 18 and 25.
One goal of the program is to com-
See EXCHANGE • Pag© 2
eptember 8,2000
Frais
bid
today
By Marilisa Jimenez
Hurricane Staff Writer
With the arrival of Bid Day, today, marking the end of fraternity Recruitment (formerly known as “rush”), the UM campus is full of young men donning Greek-letter T-shirts, speaking of the advantages of “going greek" and reminding students that these organizations may be more than what they expect.
Bid Day is the end of fraternity Recruitment, when fraternities invite prospective members to pledge.
To many students, free-flowing alcohol, “crazy” parties and obnoxious behavior come quickly to mind when the word “fraternity” is pronounced; with the movies Animal House and Revenge of the Nerds serving as the few, testaments they have to fraternity life, said Gregory Singleton, associate dean of students.
“That image is a farce,” Singleton said. “Fraternities have evolved tremendously in the last 15 years. In 1996, 11 national greek organizations decided not allow to allow alcohol on their premises.”
Singleton said fraternities, over the years, have shifted their focus from social affairs to becoming more involved in community service and emphasizing scholarship. Universities are also more inclined to recognize them as university organizations, Singleton said.
UM recently added two Hispanic Greek-letter organizations that will be involved in activities for the month of October, Singleton said.
“If the media would cover the
positive things that fraternities do as much as the negative, things would be much different,” K.J. Moses, second vice president of the Intrafraternity Council in charge of Recruitment, said.
• Rafael Antun, the Intrafraternity Council’s first vice president said there is a distinction in perception between students who have family members or friends who participated in greek organizations and those who do not.
“Alumni members truly understand the values and bondage of brotherhood that fraternities teach their members,"Antun said.
Some students arrive at the University seeking the fraternity image often depicted in the media, said Moses.
“Right when they come on campus they want to know where the open party with alcohol is,” Moses said.
The alcohol craze is far from the truth, said Moses, and that UM’s ten fraternities are all recognized by the North American Intrafraternity	Council—a
national organization which prohibits alcohol during recruitment.
“In order to be part of the council, all fraternities have a ‘dry rush' policy,” Moses said.
“The greatest challenge that I have met is explaining the vast amount of positives of being greek to someone that is not familiar with the greek community,” said Antun.
See BID • Page 2	“