A BLOG-O-BAMA
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Check out stories and blogs during the Democratic National Convention week at KANSAN.COM
FOOTBALL FACILITY WALK-THROUGH Watch the video, narrated by Jim Marchiony, at KANSAN.COM
TWIN ORDERED TO COURT
THE STUDENT VOICE SINCE 1904
Markieff Morris allegedly shot a woman with an airsoft rifle. COURTS | 1B
HE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
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THURSDAY, AUGUST 21, 2008
WWW.KANSAN.COM
CITY COMMISSION
VOLUME 120 ISSUE 2
New city law allows alcohol outside
Patrons of Lawrence bars can now take beverages in plastic cups out of venues, onto sidewalks
BY JOE PREINER
jpreiner@kansan.com
Lawrence bar-goers will no longer have to abandon or finish their drinks when going outside for a cigarette.
According to an ordinance passed by the city commission Tuesday night, many
Lawrence bars will now be able to allow customers to enjoy their drinks on the sidewalk.
Frank Reeb, city clerk, said the demand for outside privileges began when the smoking ban was implemented in July 2004. The ban forced guests of bars and restaurants to abandon their cocktails when they wanted a cigarette.
Under the new ordinance, bars could allow people to take their drinks outside with them, as long as they were contained in plastic cups. Glasses and bottles would not be allowed outside at bars.
Reeb said the ordinance provides a more relaxed policy through lower regulations.
He said it lowered the necessary food and non-alcoholic sales percentage from
70 percent to 55 percent of the establishment's total sales. This means local establishments with alcohol sales comprising less than 45 percent of total sales will be able to let guests drink on the sidewalk.
The ordinance passed with a four-to-one vote at the city commission meeting.
Mike Amyx, city commissioner, said the rules established in the ordinance made sense, in light of the success Lawrence businesses and police had during March Madness last spring. After the tournament's semifinal and final people were allowed to dink alcohol outside as long as it was in a plastic cup.
Amyx said the city would allow restaurant such as Teller's on Massachusetts
Street, an establishment with a high percentage of food sales, to continue serving wine and food outside.
For bars, the ordinance allows the consumption of alcoholic beverages outside as long as at least six feet of unobstructed sidewalk is available for public use.
Despite that limitation, Jerry Neverve, owner of the Red Lyon Tavern on Massachusetts Street, said he was pleased the city commission finally approved the ordinance.
"I think it's fabulous," Neverve said. "We've been trying to get this passed for three years. It'll just be better for us."
bring their drinks with them when stepping outside for a cigarette.
Benjamin Lloyd Morgan, Lenexa junior, said the ruling would improve the social aspects of downtown nightlife.
"I think it's going to be awesome," Morgan said. "People want to be outside when they go out, especially during the summer. It will definitely make the social scene better."
Neverve said he had already started Red Lyon's application process required to obtain the license made available by the ordinance.
The ordinance will be effective immediately, but individual establishments must apply for the proper license to follow the new rules.
ATHLETICS
Members of the KU football team can now be viewed practicing on the newly-constructed practice field from the vantage of the Mississippi Street parking garage. The team has started practicing inside Memorial Stadium so onlookers can't watch practice.
Ryan McGeeney/KANSAN
Football team chooses to practice in Memorial Stadium for privacy
New facilities next to the Mississippi Street parking garage afford fans a view that athletics staff don't want them to have
BY B.J. RAINS
rains@kansan.com
In contrast to the football team's old practice fields, which were tucked behind Allen Fieldhouse and Hoglund Ballpark, the new fields were built next to the Mississippi Street parking garage, where passing fans can easily stop and watch practice.
"There was no real concern expressed," Jim Marchiony, associate athletics director, said of the new practice fields being positioned in plain view from pedestrians.
But now that the fields have been built and the team has begun practicing on them, officials' opinions have changed.
Fans can stand in the garage and get an unobstructed view of the team while it is practicing. The old fields were visible from some of the rooms in Oliver Hall and a few other small locations, but not nearly as many views were as clear as those of the new fields.
Campanile hill, the Kansas Union, Mississippi Street and several other spots all offer a clear view of the fields. Many locations even allow onlookers to clearly hear coaches' instructions to the players.
Coach Mark Mangino and his staff had been asking onlookers to leave at the beginning of August, but were informed that they no longer would be able to do
that.
"Mississippi Street is a public street," Marchiony said. "We can't throw someone off of a public street."
During his tenure, only a few minutes of practice each week were open to the media and the team held only two open practices for fans during training camp.
Mangino even told former running-back Brandon McAnderson's dad, Ramon McAnderson, that he couldn't watch practice after Ramon had been watching with binoculars from the apartments that overlook the old fields.
Fans who watch practice on the new fields could post updates on the Internet
about players' injuries and other information that Mangino could want to keep private, like new variations to his offense, such as Kerry Meier showing up on the field as wide receiver last year.
"Most of the practices have been in the morning so I couldn't go because of work," Mark Hays, Overland Park senior, said. "But my friends and I plan on watching some from the parking garage once school starts. It's pretty cool that we can watch practice because my friends don't even have tickets to the games so this will be a way for them to see them play."
Because it won't be allowed to keep people from watching practice, the team
has practiced almost exclusively inside Memorial Stadium.
"I'm not concerned about that kind of stuff," Mangino said. "I've got more important things to do."
Marchiony said that the whole situation had been "irritating" to both the football team and the Athletics Department. He also said that everybody was aware of the situation before the fields were built, and that nobody should be surprised with the way things turned out.
"It's not keeping anybody awake at night," Marchiony said.
—Edited by Kelsey Hayes
CAMPUS
Libraries improve Web site librarian accessibility
The KU Libraries made changes this semester to improve library services and make them more convenient. New online search tools enable users to search multiple databases simultaneously. Students can also
talk to librarians through text messaging, and a relocated circulation desk at Watson Library increases staff visibility.
FULL STORY PAGE 5A
Misdirected records destroyed in Dallas
FINANCIAL AID
The United States Department of Education made a coding error that wrongly sent an unknown number of University students' financial aid applications to a college district in Dallas. The Dallas district asked University students to first enroll in one of its eight colleges to receive financial aid. The district realized
index
the department's mistake when confused KU students indicated they did not want to enroll in the Dallas district.
FULL STORY PAGE 3A
Classifieds... 4B
Crossword... 6A
Horoscopes... 6A
All contents, unless stated otherwise, © 2008 The University Daily Kansan
Opinion...7A
Sports...1B
Sudoku...6A
SPENCER RESEARCH LIBRARY
MILES OF MEMORIES
Billy Mills, former KU track star, won the gold in the'64 Olympics. SPORTS | 1B
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