THE STUDENT VOICE SINCE 1904
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
VOL.115 ISSUE 130
TUESDAY. APRIL 12, 2005
WWW.KANSAN.COM
CONSTRUCTION
Construction continues on 14th Street
BY NATE KARLIN
nkharlin@kansan.com
KANSAN STAFF WRITER
Construction workers began work yesterday at the intersection of 14th Street and Jayhawk Boulevard, a project that was supposed to completed in March. The intersection has been closed for nearly a year.
Fourteenth street is not expected to be open before the end of the semester, Jim Modig, director of Design and Construction Management, said.
Ken Stoner, director of student housing, said his staff communicated the delay with scholarship hall residents who live in the area last week.
"It's just a mess," he said.
Nolan T. Jones, Pittsburg sophomore, and Grace Pearson Scholarship Hall resident said the construction created more problems for parking.
With the street closed, scholarship hall residents have had trouble finding spots, especially on weekend nights when the streets become cluttered with patrons from local bars, he said.
Aubree Bowen, Augusta sophomore, said the 14th Street closing didn't bother her because she just walked to campus. She also said that most of
the girls in her Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority house weren't upset about the closing.
Contracting and a funding approval caused the delay, Design and Construction Management officials said.
In a previous article, Gary Lawson project manager, said construction along 14th Street was supposed to begin around Feb. 7 in order to meet its scheduled completed date, which was now unknown.
Stoner sent an e-mail last week to all scholarship hall students about the construction that began yesterday.
"Weather permitting, this project should move forward very quickly." Stoner wrote in his e-mail. The e-mail did not
mention a completion date.
The extended deadline has not set well with some scholarship hall students who used the 14th Street entrance often after 5 p.m., when it opened to traffic.
Mike Bretches, Battenfeld Scholarship Hall resident, said the closed entrance made driving to his hall difficult.
"It's a big hassle to get around, especially since Louisiana is a one-way street," the Hutchinson sophomore said.
Friends who visit him have trouble navigating their way around the construction and through the unofficial detour streets, he said.
SEE 14TH STREET ON PAGE 5A
Stephanie Farley/KANSAN
There's no street sign marking 14th Street at its intersection with Jayhawk Boulevard at the top of the hill on campus. But that doesn't really matter because after about a year the 14th Street intersection is still closed to traffic. The construction project was supposed to be completed at the end of March.
PROFILE
Erin Droste/KANSAN
Mike Amyx, city commissioner, sits in the barbershop that was owned by his grandfather and his father before being passed down to him. Amyx was elected April 5 as city commissioner with the majority of votes.
City gains cutting edge
BY JASON SHAAD
jshaad@kansan.com
KANSAN STAFF WRITER
Through his little window of the world, Mike Amyx sees a lot of changes. From hairstyles, cars and fashion trends to city development, he catches all of it. And throughout each day he watches and listens, he chats and cuts hair. It's the same thing he's been doing for the last 30 years.
On any given day, he can get a variety of feedback on any issue in town. Amyx knows just about every issue people in Lawrence care about.
"I can gather all kinds of information here because, in my business, I have people from all walks of life come in," Amyx said.
And now he will take that knowledge to the city commission.
Last Tuesday, voters picked him to become the newest member of the city commission. Incumbent commissioners Sue
Hack and David Schauner also won seats.
Amyx, owner and barber of Amyx Barbershop at 842 1/2 Massachusetts St., will be sworn in to the commission tonight. Although he was the only non-incumbent candidate elected, Amyx has plenty of experience in local politics.
He has been mayor of the city commission twice, from 1985 to 1986 and from 1987 to 1988. He was a member of the Douglas County Commission from 1988 to 1993 and served as the chairman of the Kansas Board of Barbering from 1993 to 1996.
"I have always looked at my business as a natural progression to getting into politics," he said. "I'm in the service business. Being a city commissioner is a carryover. The city commission provides service to the entire community."
Amyx said his hair cutting and political careers were parallel.
POLITICS
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decision by the Lawrence City Commission.
His grandmother was the city clerk in Lone Elm, and his mom and dad were involved with the city precinct commission in Lawrence.
Phog Allen got his hair cut at the shop. So did Roy
He said both his business and his political involvement were connected to deep family ties.
Both his grandfather and father owned and operated the shop before he took over after becoming a licensed barber in 1975. Its history is decorated on the walls, which are filled with sports photos and local newspaper clippings.
Williams. Chancellor Robert Hemenway still comes in, Amxv said.
Amyx could also become the vice-mayor tonight. Each year the commission selects a new mayor and vice-mayor.
That means that Amyx, who received 10.635 votes, should become vice-mayor while Dennis "Boog" Highberger should become mayor.
Traditionally, the vice mayor becomes mayor and the candidate with the highest number of votes in the general election becomes vice mayor, city manager Mike Wilden said.
As much as he will enjoy the position, it was not a gauge of his success, Amyx said.
"I'm just one of those local guys who gets up and goes to work every day," he said. "The biggest thing for me is being able to live up to people's expectations of me."
STUDENT SENATE ELECTIONS
Candidates debate issues
— Edited by Ross Fitch
BY DANIEL BERK
dberk@kansan.com
STAFF WRITER
Elaine Jardon, presidential candidate for Delta Force, said that Senate had become stagnate during the past three years that KUUnited has been in office.
It wasn't the shouting match that some of the candidates expected, but yesterday's formal Student Senate debate did contain a discussion about the culture of Senate.
Jardon said Senate needed to be more progressive and improve outreach to students.
Marynell Jones, vice presidential candidate for KUUnited, responded to Jardon's claim
Dennis Chanay, presidential candidate for Student Voice, agreed with Jardon that it was time for a change and also focused on last year's 14 percent election turnout. Chanay said that Senate needed to find a way to increase voter turnout as well as have an open bill submission through which any student, not just student senators, could present a bill at a Senate meeting.
that Senate has become stagnate by saying that Senate wrote 30 more bills this year than it did last year. Jones also disagreed with Chanay's idea that any student should be able to present a bill. Senate can be confusing for some students, and all 81 senators are willing to write bills for various campus organizations, she said.
Jones said she was not surprised that the other coalitions focused on bill legislation.
Jardon said this year's debate was a lot cleaner than last year's. Delta Force has made it a priority to be classy and not attack other coalitions she said.
"Incumbents normally receive comments like that." Jones said. "It is the nature of the election. Some groups are going to think Senate is stagnate because the same people keep being elected into office."
Most of the crowd was composed of people who were involved with coalitions or who were involved with Senate in some form.
"The small crowd goes hand-
SEE DEBATE ON PAGE 5A
CAMPUS ACCESSIBILITY
Disability issues deserve awareness
By ESTUARDO GARCIA
egarcia@kansan.com
KANSAN SCRIPT WRITER
Rachel Magario has been blind since she was a little girl. Hamlet, her jet-black guide dog and a walking stick help her get around campus.
She also uses LiftVan, a service to transport students with disabilities to academic-related activities.
But getting around campus hasn't always been easy for the for the graduate student from Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Magario
She made her case to KU on Wheels a couple years ago to allow her to use the LiftVan services, which were only available to students with mobility disabilities.
She said KU on Wheels originally justified its rule because blind people could get in and out of the regular buses but later made an exception for her. She said
the organization never took into account the difficulty of having her guide dog on the bus or waiting for the bus.
Now Magario's goal is to have a seat on Student Senate that would represent students on campus with disabilities, so the University of Kansas can avoid rules like the one that
Todav's weather
SEE DISABILITY ON PAGE 5A
All contents, unless stated otherwise,
© 2005 The University Daily Kansan
Blast off
Despite a malfunctioning parachute, which tore a test rocket in half, students who participated in a test rocket launch called the experiment a success. The rocket reached 1,198 feet before problems occurred. PAGE 5A
Up to the plate
Football preview
Warm-up music is an integral part of any baseball player's routine. Find out how Kansas players pick the songs that get them fired up. PAGE 1B
1
Football teams around the Big 12 Conference have started spring practices, preparing for next fall's season. Ryan Colaiani gives a quick rundown of how everyone's shaping up. PAGE 6B
KU patents
Some discoveries and inventions at the University of Kansas become products in the marketplace.The University,not the researchers,profits from these products. PAGE 2A
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