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Wednesday, January 21, 2015
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WEST CAMPUS
Noise ordinance impact muted By Wynne Davis @wynneellyn
Many Greek groups in West Campus still do not know the exact requirements of the city sound ordinance, after the city promised to provide details in a meeting last fall, according to Daniel Warner, government senior and former president of Zeta Beta Tau fraternity.
The Oct. 1 ordinance, which seeks to reduce sound levels in West Campus, requires organizations to apply for a permit through the Austin Center for Events at least three weeks before an event. Warner said the lack of specific guidelines has hampered his organization’s event planning process. “During this meeting, I had asked these [city] officials if
it were possible to compile a list, including City of Austin ordinances and statutory law, that would have applied to us,” Warner said. “One of the speakers had notified us that they would ‘send us the link’ with all of the city’s ordinances and codes.” Warner said the event permits have not been approved in a timely manner, making it difficult to organize events.
According to Austin Police Department Sergeant Alfred Trejo, the ordinance is not new to the city, but the code will be held to a stricter standard in the West Campus area. Trejo said organizations were required to previously get approval from the fire department before hosting outdoor parties, but the application has been updated to include approval from
multiple city departments. According to Andy Polasek, computer science junior and director of the Taos Co-op, many West Campus residents have decided to no longer host public parties as a result of the permit requirement. “It’s really hard to go through the permitting process,” Polasek said. “Some of our buildings
ORDINANCE page 3
STATE
Abbott, Patrick promise ‘new day in Texas’ By Eleanor Dearman @ellydearman
As Texans from across the state gathered at the Capitol to watch the governor and lieutenant governor’s inauguration, Greg Abbott and Dan Patrick emphasized their goals of lowering taxes and securing the TexasMexico border. In his inauguration speech, Abbott established the goals he will prioritize as governor. Following the ceremony, attendees gathered on the Capitol lawn for a barbecue and parade. The Future of Texas Ball, an event that takes place after the governor’s inauguration, will be held this evening. Abbott said his path to the governor’s office was an improbable one. Abbott is paralyzed and in a wheelchair after a tree fell
TEXAS page 2
Ellyn Snider | Daily Texan Staff
Greg Abbott waves to supporters at the inaugural parade Tuesday afternoon. Abbott is the first new governor of Texas in 14 years, replacing fellow Republican Rick Perry.
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NATION
Obama lays out vision for college subsidies By Jackie Wang @jclqnwng
In his sixth State of the Union address Tuesday, President Barack Obama called for wider access to higher education and implored Congress to fully subsidize the cost of community college for qualified students. “Forty percent of our college students choose community college,” Obama said. “Some are young and starting out. Some are older and looking for a better job. Some are veterans and single parents trying to transition back into the job market. Whoever you are, this plan is your chance to graduate ready for the new economy, without a load of debt. … I want to work with this Congress to make sure Americans already burdened with student loans can reduce their monthly payments, so that student debt doesn’t derail anyone’s dreams.” History professor Jeremi Suri said he appreciated Obama’s emphasis on training people for higher-paying job fields, such as coding, nursing and robotics. “More and more, anyone who wants to succeed in society needs a college education, needs to be a knowledgeable worker,” Suri said. “It’s also true
OBAMA page 3
STUDENT GOVERNMENT
POLICE
Rady, Strickland vow to complete platform
UTPD utilizes social media
By Samantha Ketterer
Student Government President Kori Rady and Vice President Taylor Strickland are currently halfway through their terms.
@sam_kett
With half of their yearlong terms behind them, Student Government President Kori Rady and Vice President Taylor Strickland said they hope to use their remaining time in office to extend and perfect the initiatives they implemented in the fall semester. In the fall, SG members authored a resolution in support of having the Flawn Academic Center open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This semester, Rady said the FAC will retain extended opening hours, but cut back slightly to 24 hours a day, five days a week. “The plan is to work with [the FAC] to take away 24/7 because Fridays and Saturdays weren’t getting that heavy of usage,” Rady said. “We’re meeting with a roundtable group in the next couple of weeks, I hope, but I don’t want
Marshall Tidrick Daily Texan Staff
to make any promises. We hope that it’ll be back this semester, as it was quite successful.” Cherry Chau, human biology and chemical engineering junior, said she uses the FAC to study late at night because of its proximity to West Campus, but a change from last semester’s 24/7 policy would not interfere with
her study habits. “Until finals come, people don’t really study on Fridays anyway,” Chau said. “If the [FAC] was open Sunday through Thursday, that would be good. I wouldn’t mind the reduction.” Rady said the Student Services Budget Committee, a collective effort between SG, Graduate
Student Assembly and faculty members, approved $52,000 in additional funding to continue Safe Ride, a student driving service that provides users with rides home from downtown Austin. The additional funds will double the size of the program, Rady said.
SG page 3
By Wynne Davis @wynneellyn
Police departments across the nation now use Yik Yak, a social media app, to monitor crime reports. Campus police departments in South Dakota and Wisconsin started using Yik Yak, which functions as an anonymous, GPSbased message board, to monitor criminal activity on campus and aid in criminal investigations. Under the application’s privacy policy, information is disclosed to law enforcement officials when necessary to prevent or respond to illegal activity. According to UT police spokeswoman Cindy Posey, UTPD is not currently monitoring Yik Yak activity on and around campus. “It’s a possibility, but I can’t say for sure that we’ll do it,” Posey said. Posey said she was
We keep an eye on everything, just looking for anything that might rise to the level of concern, but just like any other police department would. —Cindy Posey, UTPD spokeswoman
informed of other campuses’ use of Yik Yak at a social media conference in January. “I thought it was very interesting that they were doing it, and I got on it and looked at it and checked it out,” Posey said. “I can see where it could be useful for law enforcement.” Biology senior Makenzie Harris said she thinks
UTPD page 2
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