The Spectrum Volume 60 Issue 78

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Ka Shing Chu /// The Spectrum

Houses rented by UB students in the University Heights violate city and state building codes.

Reaching New Heights Off-campus safety issues endanger UB students

The Independent Student Publication of the University at Buffalo WEDNESDAY EDITION v April 27, 2011 Vol. 60 No. 78 v ubspectrum.com

ANDREW WIKTOREditor in Chief Every year, thousands of UB students risk their lives by renting homes that violate city and state building codes. In an eight-block radius within the University Heights, 75 landlords rent properties that total hundreds of violations.

Alex McCrossen /// The Spectrum

Warde Manuel, UB Athletic Director

The Warde – Manual MATTHEW PARRINO Editor in Chief Elect When Warde Manuel took over the reins of UB Athletics in 2005, drastic change was imminent; just how much, surprised even Manuel himself. Manuel is the athletic director at the University at Buffalo and was hired at a time when UB Athletics was in shambles. In his time at UB, he has orchestrated the success of six Mid-American Confer-

ence championship teams and has brought UB Athletics to a level of respectability. There are many words that can describe Manuel, but in the case of former swimmer Zach Ruske, nothing works better than approachable. In his third year, Manuel decided it was time for a new direction for the swimming program at UB, so he combined the men’s and women’s team under the direction of Andy Bashor. Ruske, the 400-Individual Medley record holder at UB, wasn’t happy about the switch. “The change in coaching was sort of a shock to me and my team-

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Since August, four houses rented by UB students caught fire. All the residences had faulty wiring or natural gas problems, according to Off Campus Student Relations. In one case on Custer Street, five students were sleeping when a fire broke out and were saved by their friends who were visiting from another school. “The morning when our friends woke us up, the smoke was filling my room because the fire was in between my floor and my roommate’s ceiling,” said Brady Cohen, a junior geography and international studies major. “I’m a very heavy sleeper and the smoke alarm never woke me up. Luckily our friends were there or who knows what would have happened.” The blame often lies with the landlords, many of whom don’t live in Buffalo and all of whom are looking to make a profit on students who are eager to live independently for the first time in a part of the city that is affordable, close to campus, and near a happening nightlife. Blame also lies with the city,

Freeze If You’re Human

which doesn’t have enough inspectors to check every property and lacks the funding to follow up on all complaints. It falls on the university, too, which allows its students, including those who come from abroad to study at UB, to live in dangerous conditions. Finally, it rests with students, who, in their excitement of finding an apartment of their own, don’t ask pertinent safety questions, require an inspection before moving in, or report problems when they see them. The main violations are:

v illegally partitioned rooms v electrical code violations v lack of smoke detectors v lack of carbon monoxide detectors

v shoddy porches that might collapse if not fixed There are also a slew of minor violations, including trash in the backyards, broken gutters, and boarded windows, all of which can present serious dangers if not corrected.

The Danger

asked if he smelled smoke. “We walked into his room and there was smoke pouring out of his window,” Lafferty said. “I turned around to go back into the kitchen and there was smoke pouring out of our sink, so we got out of the house and we called the fire department.” Firefighters arrived, but not before the house, located at 63 Montrose Ave., went up in flames. The students didn’t have renter’s insurance and lost many of their belongings. They also struggled to find housing in the days following the fire. The fire marshal told the students that the blaze was electrical. The students insist they had been complaining about electrical issues for months, but that their absentee landlords – Brad Engel and Russ Hiltermann of BRoS Properties – did nothing to rectify the problems. Engel and Hiltermann, who own 32 units in The Heights, insist the students were misusing electronics and were heating the house with space heaters. Investigators, however, have determined that the cause was an “electrical malfunction inside an interior wall” and was accidental, according to the Fire Marshal’s Office.

Regardless of blame, the stuAt around 4 p.m. on Jan. 9, David dents were lucky that the fire Lafferty, a sophomore biomedi- was in the afternoon, and not in cal sciences major, was getting the middle of the night. ready to head to his job as an EMT when one of his roommates Continued on Page 11

Chris Chin, a senior psychology major. The purpose of the flash mob demonstration was to expose reality and raise awareness of those less fortunate than the average high-strung student.

AKARI IBURISenior Life Editor A couple with clasped hands and stretched arms are in mid-strut and Starbucks bound, but their feet are stuck in place. They stand completely still, motionless. At 4:20 p.m. and 5:45 p.m. on Monday, students casually walking around campus stopped dead in their tracks, remaining frozen in place for five minutes in the middle of the SU. This second annual flash mob performance at UB was for Freeze for Humanity, a powerful student demonstration organized by Professor Susan Anner of THD 103, a theater and dance performance appreciation course. The event took place in an effort to raise consciousness on humanitarian issues. “It was really cool,” said Hoon Song, a sophomore business major. “I wanted to be a part of it.” Song was with friends in the SU when the earlier demonstration was performed. About 40 students participated in the performance, clogging up the exits of the SU. When a whistle sounded the start of their five minute pause, the familiar echoes of the busy building dipped down to a dull roar as Anner’s students stood motionless and silent. Observers of the demonstration reacted differently. Some students leaned across second floor railings to steal a peek while others curiously observed from the tables in the dining area. A group of seated girls called for their friend several times, but he remained loyal and did not speak. “Being a part of it was a good experience,” said

“Students get so stressed out about their exams and their papers, the really important stuff that they have to do to get through school,” Anner said. “We just want to take a few moments and think about people outside of the university who are suffering even bigger difficulties than what their next paper is going to be.” Through Anner’s teaching of the various dynamics of the arts, the group focused on two organizations, The Miracle Project, a theater and film program for children with autism and other special needs, and Danceability, a local organization of young people and adults with disabilities practicing dance. “It’s really good to raise money but it’s also really good to just raise awareness and put things in perspective,” Anner said. “The arts are for everybody, it’s a process of including people with all different types of abilities and it can be very meaningful and inspiring, we just want to share that.” Though students worked hard to freeze for a cause and spread awareness, other students not traveling through the SU at that time were unable to witness the event. Through her performance appreciation class, Anner plans to continue the trend of a flash mob at the end of every spring semester around the time of finals. “I’d like [the demonstration] to raise awareness about everything that’s going on in the world right now… [there is] so much outside of right here and now that we need to be thinking about, just for a few minutes,” Anner said. g

Email: features@ubspectrum.com

Audrey Lin /// The Spectrum

Students freeze for humanity in the Student Union

WEATHER

ARTS & LIFE :: 6–9, 14–15 MAIN STORY :: 1, 10–11 DAILY DELIGHTS :: 12 CLASSIFIEDS :: 13 SPORTS :: 16

THURS

OPINION :: 3

60%

20%

FRI

NEWS :: 4–5

WED

INSIDE

40%

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7 H: 68 L: 56 H: 55 L: 43 H: 49 L: 40

LIFE NAME HITS THE SHELF WITH ITS YEARLY ISSUE PAGE 4

ARTS BEASTIE BOYS PAGE 9

ARTS A WEEK IN INK PAGE 14


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