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TUESDAY
feb. 7, 2017 high 44°, low 42°
t h e i n de p e n de n t s t u de n t n e w s pa p e r of s y r a c u s e , n e w yor k |
N • Inching closer
The New York State Senate passed a bill Monday that would bring ride-hailing services, such as Uber and Lyft, to Syracuse and the rest of the state. Page 3
O • Keeping it clean
Environment columnist Lydia Niles-Steger argues that New York state Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s proposal to fund clean water initiatives is insufficient. Page 5
city
dailyorange.com
P • Cover up
The Grateful Dead cover band Pearly Baker’s Best took over the stage at Funk ‘N Waffles downtown Monday night, just as it does every week. Page 9
S • Staying longer
SU has been led by graduate transfers Andrew White and John Gillon. Picking up those transfers is becoming increasingly popular, especially in the ACC. Page 16
student association
Commission approves JRB delays Evangelista verdict demolishing Chuck’s By Jacob Gedetsis enterprise editor
The demolition of a string of South Crouse Avenue businesses – including the popular bar Hungry Chuck’s – jumped over its first major hurdle Monday night as the Syracuse Planning Commission passed the proposal. BLVD Equities, a real estate development firm based in New Jersey, proposed demolishing the structures at 727 S. Crouse Ave. — where Chuck’s and Funk ‘n Waffles are located — and constructing an eight-story “mixed use building.” Jared Hutter and Brian Rosen, BLVD Equities partners, celebrated with a fist bump when the approval of the proposal was announced. The Planning Commission unanimously approved the combination of two properties and waived a parking requirement that caused the vote to be tabled during the January meeting. “It’s been a long road, and we’re excited to push forward,” Hutter said. Theobald said he plans to have Chuck’s move into the new space and remain in the area long-term. Hutter previously said he was not comfortable giving a potential timeline for the demolition and construction of the project. But several people close to the project, including Chuck’s owner Stephen Theobald, said the construction could start as soon as May, and that students would hopefully be able to live in the complex starting in the 2018-2019 academic year. Hutter and other relevant partners and developers declined to comment on the next steps for the project, which aims to clean up the Marshall Street area and attract major retail spaces to the area. The project would include 20,000 square feet of retail on the first floor in addition to residential
apartments on the upper floors. Syracuse head basketball coach Jim Boeheim was one of the first investors in the project, Hutter said. Boeheim was also an investor in #BLVD404, BLVD Equities last Hill project. With the rise of luxury apartments in the area, including #BLVD404, Hutter said he was committed to keeping rent low for the new complex. The company does not have current pricing for rent, but he said it would be lower than the current rent in luxury apartments in the area. The cost for a two-bed and one-bath unit at Park Point starts at $1,439 a month per person, and the same style apartment at U Point costs $1,099 per person. The major point of contention with the project was a zoning law that requires a set number of parking spots to be available for parking and retail spaces. The proposed project would normally require 231 total parking spots in the immediate area, but the developers asked the commission to wave that number to zero. In January, the Syracuse City Planning Commission tabled a vote on the proposal after a lengthy public hearing centered on the parking concerns. In an interview during the week leading up to vote, Hutter said his company has secured a “significant amount” of off-site parking spaces that would be available to residents if they want that option. He declined to go into further detail. This could be just the first major change to the Marshall Street area, as Hutter said he wants this development to spark further change on the Hill. The Dellas Family, owners of Varsity Pizza and Faegan’s Cafe & Pub, have been in early talks with BLVD Equities about a possible development plan on the family’s other Marshall Street properties. jagedets@syr.edu
MATTHEW VANDEMARK, the chair of the SA Judicial Review Board, postponed the final decision in the investigation of SA President Eric Evangelista. jacob greenfeld asst. photo editor By Delaney Van Wey asst. news editor
A decision regarding Student Association President Eric Evangelista’s possible constitutional violation was again delayed, as the Judicial Review Board had not made a decision as of Monday night’s assembly meeting. The JRB has placed Evangelista under investigation for appointing a cabinet member without opening applications to the student body. Matthew VanDemark, chair of the JRB, said the investigation was extended to allow time to collect more testimonies. The board planned to meet Monday night to review the collected information and possibly make a decision. The JRB plans to make its decision public and provide an official report in time for next week’s assembly meeting on Feb. 13. The involved parties, including Evan-
gelista, and the SA assembly will be informed of the board’s decision first. VanDemark declined to comment further on the investigation as it is still open. Evangelista was not present at the Monday night’s SA meeting. The JRB previously planned to make its decision on Monday, prior to the assembly meeting. Before that, it had planned to make its decision on Feb. 3 but delayed doing so. The alleged constitutional violation comes from not acting on a request from the assembly to send a campus-wide email calling for applications for a public relations co-chair position, according to a copy of the violation notice obtained by The Daily Orange. Evangelista told SA members in a Facebook post on Jan. 13 that he intended to send a campus-wide
what is sa? The Student Association is the student government body of the university. SA is currently in its 60th session and Eric Evangelista is president. Outside of the cabinet, there are four committees and four boards, which report to the association.
12
The number of days since the investigation into SA President Eric Evangelista was opened
see evangelista page 6
university politics
Faculty urge Syverud to oppose ban By Satoshi Sugiyama asst. news editor
There is a proposal to build an eight-story building on South Crouse Avenue. A rendering is shown above. courtesy of qpk
About 250 Syracuse University faculty members have signed a new petition calling on Chancellor Kent Syverud to take a stance against President Donald Trump’s executive order on immigration. As of Monday evening, 244 members of the SU community — most of them faculty members — had signed the document, which has been circulating online. The petition states that the faculty members are “deeply disappointed” that Sy verud hasn’t expressed a clear opposi-
tion to the executive order banning people from seven Muslimmajority countries from entering the United States. It also presses Syverud to “exemplify true moral leadership” not just as the head of the university but also as an educational leader in the Syracuse community, which houses many immigrants and refugees. The petition is signed by both tenured and non-tenured faculty across SU’s different schools and colleges. “We call on Chancellor Syverud to go beyond the embrace of our affected community members as ‘always Orange’,” the peti-
tion states. “… We urge him in the strongest possible terms to join his peers at other institutions in recognizing Trump’s Executive Order for what it is: unlawful in the eyes of countless legal experts and a direct threat to the core values of any university or open society.” The petition points out that leaders at other universities, including the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard University, have expressed clear opposition to Trump’s ban. In statements, Syverud has expressed support for undocumented students and
see petition page 6