Tomorrow's weather
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY
Slight chance of thunderstorms; otherwise cool and dry
Kansan
Thursday
September 11, 1997
Section:
A
Vol. 104 - No. 15
Online today
The UDKi rebounds from a major server crash. We are still rebuilding, but we are back online.
http://www.kansan.com
Sports today
WWW.KANSAN.COM
The Kansas volleyball team starts its season Friday in the Kansas Invitational Tournament. The home opener is against Buffalo.
SEE PAGE 1B
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Disease kills million-dollar tree
Students saved tree from being replaced by Anschutz Library
By Daniel E. Thompson
dthompson@kansan.com
Kansan staff writer
The million-dollar tree is dead.
The infamous American Elm tree that stands south of Anschutz Science Library and caused an uproar in the '80s when the library was built has fallen victim to Dutch Elm disease.
"There's no reviving it; it's dead," said Mike Richardson, director of facilities operations.
The tree's branches are dotted with dying leaves and its gnarled, twisted trunk is rotting. Richardson said the tree would be cut down during winter break.
"It will take a couple of days to bring it down," he said.
If the tree becomes a safety hazard before winter break, then Richardson said it could be taken down over a weekend.
American Elms have no resistance to Dutch Elm Disease, which is carried by beetles, said Bob Lichwardt, professor emeritus of botany.
"It's unfortunate, because it was a beautiful tree," he said.
The elm was dubbed the "million dollar tree" because of a student campaign in 1984 to move the planned science library to protect the tree. Petitions and complaints persuaded the KU administration to move the building site north, which supposedly cost millions of dollars.
However, many people are skeptical that saving the tree was that expensive.
"How much could it have cost?" asked Kathleen Neeley, director of the science library from 1984-1997. "If it would have cost a million dollars, we couldn't have spent a million dollars on other things. I don't remember anything like that."
Jim Modig, director of design and construction management. said the building
was adjusted only slightly because of the tree.
"There was no substantial cost; we discussed it from day one," he said.
Peckham Guyton Albers & Viets Inc., the architects who designed the library, estimated the cost of protecting the elm and nine other trees around the building site to be $530.
Mark Sump, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences student senator in 1984, said the debate over the building of the library was about a much larger issue than the elm tree.
"They were destroying a beautiful campus." Sump said from the political consulting firm he now owns in Minneapolis. "They weren't listening to what we were saying. They're systematically pulling up trees and replacing them with buildings. It will all be concrete."
A petition with about 3,000 names was given to Student Senate, and Sump put forth the bill to save the tree in October of 1894.
"Frankly, if it hadn't been for the alumni, the tree would have been gone long ago," Sump said. "Chancellor Budig was getting calls from the alumni who were saying, 'I had my first kiss under that tree,' and other sappy stuff like that."
During the construction of the library, opponents voiced concerns about how the excavation would affect the elm's roots. And although the construction of the library didn't help the tree, it is unlikely that the construction contributed to the tree's death a decade later, Richardson said.
"We'll be looking for more disease resistant trees that have a longer life and require less maintenance," he said.
When the elm finally comes down, Modig said it would be replaced by two more trees.
Right The million-dollar tree, located between Anschutz Science Library and the Military Science building, died recently from Dutch Elm disease. The tree is scheduled to be removed during winter break. Photo by Eric B. Howell/KANSAN
Master plan to set standard for renovations on campus
By Matthew Friedrichs
Kansan staff writer
The face of the University of Kansas is changing. New buildings, such as Bales Recital Hall, have opened. Old buildings, such as Budig Hall, have been renovated.
Other projects, including the expansion of Murphy Hall, the renovation of Joseph R. Pearson Hall for the School of Education and the construction of a parking garage north of the Kansas Union, have received University approval in the past 18 months.
A committee has been working on the plan, which will be the first comprehensive look at the future of the Lawrence campus since "The University of Kansas Physical Development Planning Workbook" was completed in late 1973.
Potential projects
Now the renewal and development of the Lawrence campus will be directed by a campus master plan scheduled to be released in the next two weeks.
Chancellor Robert Hemenway unveiled some possible projects included in the plan during his speech at the faculty and staff convocation Tuesday.
"The first goal is simple," he said. "We must preserve the beauty of Mount Oread. This is one of the most beautiful campuses in the United States, maybe in the world."
Hemenway said that two goals must be considered in the completion of the plan.
"We must preserve its beauty for
"The second goal is equally simple," Hemenway said. "We must create an environment that shows respect for learning. We ought to be asking that question whenever we plan: Does this show respect for learning? A leaking roof shows no respect for the classroom or the laboratory or the people who are underneath it."
those who come after us. If we don't we will have failed to pass on something that's very important.
Tom Waechter, planning coordinator for design and construction management, said the new plan was necessary
Planners in 1973, influenced by the energy crisis, did not foresee students driving cars to the extent they do today. Waechter said.
While many of the proposals remain conceptual, there are strong indications that some of the projects will be completed. Currently scheduled projects point toward future changes.
because many assumptions made and applied to campus development in 1973 were no longer true or had changed.
See PLAN on page 2A
Bookstores lose needed stadium storage space
Renovations to displace nonathletic departments
By Corrie Moore
Kansan staff writer
The Kansas Union Bookstores in the Kansas and Burge Unions will have to give up 5,600 square feet of storage space by Nov. 1 because of the renovations to Memorial Stadium.
Mike Reid, manager of the bookstores, said the loss of the space, which was built by the bookstores 35 years ago and is located on the east side of the stadium, will create many problems.
For example, Reid said, in November, books start arriving for the spring semester.
"We hope this doesn't affect students in terms of textbooks," he said.
Reid said another concern was traffic. Semi tractor-trailers deliver merchandise to the stadium parking lot, where there is a lot of room for the trucks to maneuver.
The new storage space would have to be able to accommodate the trucks, he said.
Rodger Oroke, director of facilities management, said a time constraint was the biggest problem the bookstores faced. Oroke said that renovations would start directly after the 1997 football season, which is why the bookstores have to find alternate storage space by November. The bookstores were notified of the changes Aug. 21.
The stores receive and send about $8 million worth of merchandise each year, Reid said. All the merchandise sold in the bookstores and the University Technology Center, which is located on the third floor of the Burge Union, is first delivered to Memorial Stadium, where it is opened.
See UNIONS on page 2A
The EpiLaser
Treatment of the underarms and bikini area take about 10 minutes each
Underarm hair removal costs $300.
Treatment to the legs takes close to an hour.
Bikini-area hair removal costs $450.
Leg-hair removal costs $700.
If more than one procedure is done, the price is reduced.
Two systems in use in Kansas City area
Zap! EpiLaser used to remove ladies' hair at Med Center
By Sarah Chidwick
schadwick@kansan.com
Kansas staff writer
For those tired of hassling with razors and shaving cream, the University of Kansas Medical Center may have the answer—the Epilaser.
The EpILaser uses high-energy laser light to remove hair follicles. It was introduced at the MedCenter three months ago and is only used at one other location in the Kansas City area in a private medical practice.
Since its introduction, about 30 people have benefited from the procedure at the MedCenter, said Federico Gonzolez, associate professor of plastic surgery. Gonzolez and other doctors said the procedure was relatively painless.
"We're just gearing up," Gonzolez said. "First we spent a lot of time testing on volunteers to make sure it functions well. A number of people have tried a number of other options before this. So far we've had extremely positive feedback."
A session to remove hair from underarms or the bikini area takes about 10 minutes. Cramer said. Removing hair on the legs takes closer to an hour.
The cost of having both underarms done is $300, and the bikini area is $450, Cramer said. It usually takes two to three treatments to finish the job and the cost of each treatment covers as many sessions as it takes, she said.
"The cost of doing this will probably be paid for in a short amount of time," Gonzolez said. "People we've talked to are just so pleased that they don't have to go through that shaving everyday."
A dermatologist in Boston invented the hair-removing laser three years ago, but it just recently has been put to use.
The laser targets and destroys the hair roots, said Anne Cramer, assistant professor of plastic surgery and director of the EpiLaser program.
The skin must be shaved and untanned before receiving the treatment because the laser effects pigment. Also, it will not work on skin that has been recently waxed or received electrolysis, another mode of hair removal. Cramer said.
"The hair needs to be at skin level," Cramer said. "That reduces damage to the skin, like blistering."
The procedure generally is not painful, said Cramer, who has received the treatment herself
"Usually patients come in on their lunch hour and go right back to work," she said.
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