Observer the
The Independent Newspaper Serving Notre Dame and Saint Mary’s Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Volume 45 : Issue 40
ndsmcobserver.com
Kramer sells portion of portfolio Storms hit;
students take cover
By KATLYN SMITH News Writer
Editor’s note: This is the final installment in a twopart series about Kramer Properties and Campus Apartments, which both lease off-campus housing to students in South Bend. Local landlord Mark Kramer said selling a portion of his portfolio to Gross and Cohen Real Estate Investors has benefitted his business. “I believe that it’s impacted my business in a positive way,” Kramer said. “I’m able to continue with the personal service.” Kramer finalized the deal two years ago but continued to manage the properties until the national chain Campus Apartments, hired by Gross and Cohen, took over management last spring. Maintaining personal interactions with students motivated Kramer to sell, he said. “You get to a point where
Observer Staff Report
e-mail and expressed to them that please feel free to call me so that I could help them with any transition situations, which many of them did,” Kramer said. Kramer said he would not hire a national chain to man-
Students took cover in the lowest level of buildings for about an hour and a half Tuesday morning after the University issued a campus-wide alert notifying the community of a tornado threat. The University informed students via e-mail, phone calls, text messages and overhead announcements to take cover. The messages called the threat “imminent.” No tornado occurred, but winds reached more than 70 mph, the South Bend Tribune reported. University spokesman Dennis Brown said there was no damage on campus besides “a couple branches [down] here and there.” Brown said the branches did not hit any buildings and he was not aware of any trees that came down.
see KRAMER/page 6
see SEVERE/page 7
LISA HOEYNCK | Observer Graphic
you get too large, and then you need to bring in more staff, and I’m a hands-on person,” Kramer said. “When I was approached by Gross and Cohen to sell a portion of the portfolio, I just thought it was a good idea so that I could continue to maintain that personal level
of business with my clientele, the students of Notre Dame and Saint Mary’s.” Kramer gave no advanced notification to students who had signed a lease with Kramer Properties. “It’s a sensitive process, but I did notify them once the process was complete via
Eddy Street provides off-campus jobs
Week seeks to raise alcohol awareness
PAT COVENEY/The Observer
Eddy Street Commons, a shopping dining and entertainment area near campus, provides offcampus jobs to the Notre Dame community. By LISA CARLSON News Writer
The new additions to Eddy Street to the Notre Dame community provide not only places to eat, shop and live near the University, but jobs as well. While Notre Dame strives to
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provide on-campus jobs, some students find they prefer working off campus. Cedric Strickland, a sophomore computer science major who worked at Hammes Bookstore on Eddy Street over the summer, found the job while living off-campus for a summer semester.
“I needed a job, and I liked the environment off campus better,” he said. “I didn’t want to be a student worker. I wanted a real job.” Senior Katrina Corcoran also found summer employment at Eddy Street.
see EDDY/page 7
LISA HOEYNCK | Observer Graphic
By JOHN CAMERON News Writer
As part of the ongoing efforts to inform Notre Dame students about the use and misuse of alcohol, the Office of Drug and Alcohol Education, PILLARS and student government are
sponsoring Alcohol Awareness Week on campus. “It’s extremely relevant to college students and their lifestyle,” student body president Catherine Soler said. “We think promoting education and awareness, not necessarily
see ALCOHOL/page 6
Alum reflects on musical journey page 3 ◆ Now and Then: Senior Bar page 10 ◆ Football: Ian Williams’ injury page 20 ◆ Viewpoint page 8