Basketball: Renee Brown, former Kansas coach, to take job in WNBA. Page 1B
Comedy: Imagination Workshop will perform at Liberty Hall.
Page 6A
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS
NEWS 864-4810
SECTION A VOL. 103, NO. 20
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 1996
ADVERTISING 864-4358
(USPS 650-640)
Faulty wiring caused Towers fire, police say
KU police have finished their investigation of the Jayhawker Towers fire that occurred Sept. 8, Sgt. Schuyler Bailey said the detective in charge of the investigation had concluded that the fire was caused by faulty wiring.
by Rachel Witty "The detective has made the determination that the fire started in the microwave," Balley said. "There was no evidence of food and no evidence of anything incendiary."
Although KU police are insured with their investigation, they are waiting to confirm their findings with the Lawrence Fire Department.
"A short in the wiring is the likely cause, but because of the extensive damage, that's difficult to prove," Bailey said.
Kenneth Stoner, director of student housing, said the initial damage estimate of $2,500 did not include the replacement cost of new appliances or the cleaning cost.
He said his office probably would have the total damage amount within a week.
He also said most of the students displaced by the fire had returned to their apartments, except for the students who lived in apartments 109B and 110B. Those students have been relocated to comparable or better campus housing, he said
They will have the option of returning to their apartments when refurbishing is completed in two to three weeks.
— Kansan staff report
WASHINGTON — The drug RU-486, an alternative method of abortion, passed its last major hurdle yesterday on the way to becoming available in the United States.
Abortion pill to become available in U.S. by FDA
The Food and Drug Administration said the controversial French pill was safe and effective when used under a doctor's close supervision. But the FDA withheld final approval until it receives more information about how the drug would be manufactured and labeled.
The drug, already used by 200,000 European women, has long been the focus of an emotional debate between abortion rights supporters and abortion opponents.
Election results suggest Bosnia to remain united
SARAIEVO. BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA
SARAJEVO, BUSINIA-HERZEGOVINA — a glimmer of hope that Bosnia can stay whole emerged yesterday, with presidential election results showing Muslims united around their leader and a number of Serbs abandoning extreme nationalism.
After a campaign that played on divisions wrought by 3/1/2 years of war, Bosnian President Allija Izetbegovic won the most votes for the three-person presidency.
Izetbegovic will be president for two years, and he will be the contact person for international officials eager to help knit the divided country together again.
Ex-Vice President Agnew, 77, dead from leukemia
WASHINGTON — Richard Nixon shocked everyone when he picked Spiro Agnew as his running mate in 1968. He thought he was getting a bridge to the ethnic vote. Instead, he got a politician who had taken brown envelopes filled with cash in his state office and continued the habit when he moved to Washington. For the rest of his life, Agnew insisted he was innocent.
Agnew, 77, died Tuesday of leukemia.
The Associated Press
Students wait to be served at Ekdahl Dining Commons. Every day the cafeteria serves about 1,700 people for dinner. At peak time, the cafeteria serves about 600 people an hour.
All lined out: Daisy Hill residents face daily gridlock in their dining hall and parking lots.
No quick lunches on Mrs. E's menu; lines cause delavs
By Ashlee Roll Kansan staff writer
Many students stand in line twice every day. But they are not waiting for beer in a bar or basketball tickets. They are waiting for entrance into the Ekdahl Dining Commons.
it's busy from 5:30 to 6, and noon is really bad," said Ann DeWitt. Hays freshman.
said Amy Winters. They are The cafeteria serves students who live in residence halls, Jayhawker Towers and other students who have purchased a meal card.
About 4,500 to 4,800 students eat at the cafeteria each day.
That many students eating at once causes lines and crowds, especially around noon and 5:30 p.m. Kidwell said students who took time to choose food in the line inside the cafeteria held up students waiting to enter the cafeteria.
each day.
"For lunch and dinner, we have about 1,700 to 1,800 students that come through here," said Sheryl Kidwell, dining services manager.
"It's really a design problem," Kidwell said. "It's the scrambler system. Students scramble from one area to the next."
Kidwell said that the cafeteria sometimes only had one cashier line open because too many students in the food area at one time would cause congestion.
The average wait to enter the cafeteria during lunch and dinner hours is 10 to 15 minutes. Once inside, students wait another 10 to 15 minutes.
Nona Golledge, dining service coordinator, said that she was aware of the overcrowding at the cafeteria but that little could be done to solve the problem without students' help.
"We really don't have control over the crowds,
Geoff Krieger / KANSAN
See MRS. E'S, Page 2A
The parking lot outside Lewis Hall often is crowded. Templin Hall construction has reduced the number of available parking spots on Daisy Hill and students have had to park farther from their residence halls.
Too few spots make finding parking tough in residence hall lots
By Spencer Duncan
Kansan staff writer
Residents on Daisy Hill are getting frustrated
Residents on Daisy Hill are getting hit harder.
Students, including Staci Brown, Junction City sophomore, are struggling to find parking spaces around the Daisy Hill residence halls.
It's frustrating to drive around and have to look for a place to park when you have other things to do,"
Don Kearns, parking department director, said he had not heard about an increased problem during lunch and dinner hours. However, he is aware that finding a space is getting increasingly difficult, he said.
a place to park said Brown, who lives in Ellsworth Hall. "It's really bad when it's time to eat. Parking is a real mess."
"We've talked about the crowding over there," Kearns said. "I know that there are a lot of cars, but right now
"...right now there really isn't much that we can do."
Don Kearns
parking department
director
of cars, but not how there really isn't much that we can do."
No students live in Templin, and its lot is one of the farthest from the other residence halls. Construction vehicles are parked in some spots, and students don't want to park in other spots in the Templin lot because they are too far away.
there really isn't much that we can do.
One problem is the renovation of Templin Hall and the location of its parking lot.
because they are too big. Ryan Murray, Overland Park senior, has lived on
See PARKING, Page 2A.
TODAY
INDEX
TV ...2A Horoscopes ...6B
Scoreboard ...2B Classifieds ...5B
The University Daily Kansan is the student newspaper of the University of Kansas. The first copy is paid through the student activity fee. Additional copies of the Kansan are 25 cents.
Lawrence examines growth of gangs
By Liz Musser
Gangs may not seem to be a problem in Lawrence, but fear of them is growing in the community.
command:
"Gangs are here, and they are alive," said Joe Stebbins, executive director of the Boys and Girls Club, 1620 Haskell Ave. "They are not highly organized and not yet a big threat, but there is a gang problem in Lawrence."
Kansan staff writer
About 300 parents and community members squeezed into an auditorium yesterday afternoon at Southwest Junior High School, 2511 Inveness Drive, to listen to a presentation titled Gangs 'A Call To Action'. The purpose of the presentation, which included a forum of community members familiar with gang activity, was to promote awareness and teach parents how to spot possible gang involvement in their children.
involvement Police Chief Ron Oln told the audience that the police had identified 24 gangs in Lawrence. He defined a gang as a group that had identifying colors or symbols and engaged in criminal activity. He said that a prevalence of one color, especially red, which represents the Bloods gang, in a child's closest could be a warning sign.
"The kids I see come from all economic and social groups," she said. "Gangs have been able to integrate successfully."
Another speaker, Douglas County Judge Jean Shepherd, said she had seen evidence of gang activity in Lawrence since 1989. She said it affected all levels of society.
been able to integrate teenagers Jacqueline Treiber, an eighth-grader at Central Junior High School, 1400 Massachusetts St., said she had noticed a gang presence at her school but was not sure the call-to-action presentation would be effective.
"They are doing a lot of talking, but they need to actually do something," she said. "I was also wondering why there aren't more teen-agers talking here. We are the ones most affected."
ence.
"It's gotten worse and worse, and now people are getting killed every day there," he said.
Only one teen-ager, former gang member Shamon Dixon, spoke. He said Lawrence was different from Kansas City and Wichita because it was not ignoring the gang presence.
Pam Dishman / KANSAN
The presentation was the first of what organizers hoped would be a series of lectures dedicated to the issue.
Rod Brembay, assistant city manager, speaks about gang violence in Lawrence at Southwest Junior High School, 1520 Haskell Ave. Yesterday's meeting addressed the community's questions and concerns about the growing gang problem and what can be done to fight it.
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