University Daily Kansan/Wednesday, Aug.19, 1987
5
Rundle didn't expect to get involved in city government
By KATHLEEN FADDIS Special to the Kansan
Mike Rundle never pictured himself as a public official
In fact, he said, thoughtfully rubbing his finger across his chin, "It's probably exactly the opposite of what I would have expected, myself to do."
Mike Rundle
It was a heated contest, which centered on the issue of the development of a downtown mall.
Rundle won a four-year seat on the Lawrence City Commission when he came in second in the April 7 election with 6,172 votes, 18 percent of the votes cast for the six candidates. He campaigned on the issues of preservation of historical sites, old homes and neighborhoods.
Calling himself a "dark-horse candidate," Rundle's last-minute entry into the race was a surprise. He had to file until one hour before deadline.
Rundle, also a secretary in the School of Fine Arts, said he was driven to get involved because of his feelings about the downtown city's attitudes about the downtown park.
He tried to get someone else to run, but "nobody was biting," he said.
*rundle is a *quiet person who tries*
to understand the problem and solve it," said Richard Bramham, professor of design. Rundle has worked for Bramham for several years.
Branham described Rundle as a diligent, reliable person who "wants to get a job done and does it."
Rundle grew up on a farm near Logan in northwestern Kansas, one of seven children in his family. His parents are farmers.
He has lived in Lawrence since he came here 16 years ago to attend the University of Kansas. He received a
bachelor's degree in human development and family living in 1976.
"Last year I realized I'd put down roots in Lawrence and made it my permanent home," Rundle said.
Although he has no relatives in Lawrence, Rundle said they all still live.
He is very committed to his family, he said.
His interest in historic preservation seems to come from a strong sense of history and tradition and a dedication to those values.
Outside city government, his main interest is in industry, mainly folk dances.
Rundle has been a caller with the Lawrence Barn Dance Association for about four years. He said his grandfather was a square dance caller, but he didn't get to see him in action as much as he would have liked
Rundle taught himself to call dances in an independent study program and later formed a dance-calling club with a friend. When his friend graduated and left town, Rundle said he had to start calling dances himself or let the club fold.
"I was forced to accelerate my
training and fill the gap," he said.
Again, because he believed in something and wanted to see it through, Rundle was forced into the linelight. It was "another one of those things that kind of pushed me out to the edge." he said.
Though at first the microphone occasionally shook in his hand, Rundle said he eventually acquired it to teach others and put them at ease.
Although he has had to temporarily set aside his interest in storytelling, Rundle stated he wanted to find time to pursue it.
"Storytelling can be a way of encapsulating the history of a place or a people, a way of empowering people that don't have a strong sense of their history or that it is worth recognizing." he said.
His interest in popular history also appears to come from an appreciation of his own family's history and tradition.
"The more I learn about my grandfather and square dance calling, the more I appreciate the underlying benefit he had to the community," he said. In the midst of hard economic times, he gave people a good time
and a break from their isolation by calling barn dances.
Rundle said because his family was poor, he learned about being resourceful. He said he appreciated the material value of old structures as much as their history and cultural value.
From his grandparents, he said, he also learned "not just getting by, but getting by with a flair."
Rundle said one of the main drawbacks of getting involved in the City Commission was not having enough time to travel back to western Kansas to visit his grandparents.
Although historic preservation is an important cause, Rundle said that if he could pick out his most important idea for the city, it would be increasing public and private communication in the city's development.
In light of the divisiveness caused by issues like the downtown mall, the bypass and the recent destruction of homes by the Douglas County Bank, he said there was "no better time than the present" to work toward a true community consensus.
Constance says communication is key to resolving issues
By ELAINE SUNG
Special to the Kansan
Dennis Constance is a man of two identities.
Many students at the University of Kansas knew him as a house manager at Joseph R. Pearson Hall. He has since transferred to the same job at Oliver Hall, where he helps students who bombard him with maintenance requests.
But the residents of Lawrence know him in a different capacity, as a city commissioner. On Tuesday nights, Constance must face the residents at the regular Lawrence City Commission meeting and help try to solve their problems.
"You can't solve situations if you're not talking," he said. "You have to give everyone their due and appreciate their individual."
In both jobs, however, Constance said he followed one motto learned in his years as a psychology major at KU. He pointed to a drawing on the wall of his office that said, "The toughest part of communication is the last few inches."
Constance is serving his first term as commissioner after being elected April 7 with 6,143 votes out of 34,254 cast for the six candidates. He came in third with 17.9 percent of the vote. He has been his political action week.
with each issue that comes up in Lawrence. He always had considered running for public office, he said, but the situation did not turn critical until the mall issue surfaced.
"Lawrence is approaching some critical times. We have been discovered — big time," he said, stretching his arms wide for emphasis, "and people became aware that we are 'hot property,' especially when the national mall developers came.
"You can't stop growth, that's stupid, and it'll kill the community. But growth is a process, and you can control that process. The lure of growth is so enticing that you are in danger of losing neighborhood values."
Constance takes a cautious attitude toward the growth of Lawrence. He is adamant in saying that the city does not need two centers of commerce, the downtown and a mall, at this time.
"In the long term, we may want another mall," he said. "But right now the people want downtown as the center of commerce."
Constance stayed in Lawrence after graduating with a psychology degree because of those same neighborhood values he spoke of. He grew up in Independence, Mo., and came to KU in 1968. He met his wife.
Virginia, here and was married in 1970. They have two sons, Sam, 6, and Colin. 3.
To him, Lawrence was an urban- rural combination with a good school system for his sons and a broad spectrum of culture.
"By the presence of the University, it had a lot of cultural advantages. It also has a lot of qualities of a small town drawbacks," he said.
He keeps his rookie status in mind
Constance has worked for the University system for 14 years and is familiar with every residence hall except Templin.
Living in a residence hall is part of an educational process for students, he said, and because they are learning, they will also be experimenting.
"They lose their shock value after a while," Constance said, smiling. "I want you to think have never been done. But the thing is, I've seen them been done."
Pat Simmons, Lawrence resident,
was the residence director at JRP
while Constance was hall manager
there.
"He's a nice guy," Simmons said.
"We never had any problems, and he was good at getting things done
because he was organized."
Constance prides himself on his organization, and his office is proof of it. His desk calendar is full with meetings and events, a testament to his dedication to both jobs. He also spent his vacation this summer catching up on reading for the commission.
Constance now is concerned with the bypass project. The southern bypass route has been presented and many are in favor of it, but Constance has another idea for the bypass, an eastern route.
He said that an eastern route, while costing more, would serve Lawrence better and be a better investment. His reasoning is that eastern Lawrence needs to catch up in growth with the rest of the city, and the eastern route will serve more areas than a southern route.
"You have to consider if that plan will do what you want it to do." Constance said of the southern bypass plan. "Sure, it may cost less, and funding is important, but will it serve Lawrence?"
Dennis Constance
"If you want downtown to be the heart of the city, then the southern bypass would work against that poli-
cv."
Constance also thinks about the future of Lawrence for the sake of his children.
"I want to make Lawrence so that my children will want to stay. I don't like the casualness of a modern society. I like the permanence and the continuing values of a small
town "
The battle of the bypass will most likely be just as tough as the mall battle was. But Constance has another motto tacked on his bulletin board, next to his sons' drawings. It defines his role in city politics and in the University system as well.
"We are all in this together."
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