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THURSDAY, MARCH 11, 2010
VOLUME 121 ISSUE 116
DOWNTOWN DOGS
Taking the franks to the bank
Jason Mandel, a sophomore from Chicago, and Justin Sharkan, a sophomore from Wilmette, are petting the city of Lawrence to have a hot dog stand open until 2:30 a.m. for bar-goers. The current city restrictions require food carts to close by 9 p.m. And to accommodate students, Mandel said they would try to keep prices for each item they would sell under $5.
Jerry Wang/KANSAN
Students ask city to allow hot dog cart venture
BY ANNA ARCHIBALD aarchibald@kansan.com
It's no secret: A long night out drinking can lead to late-night cravings.
Jason Mandel, a sophomore from Chicago, and Justin Sharkan, a sophomore from Wilmette, Ill., have a plan to capitalize on this reality — or at least try to.
The two students have decided to petition the city to keep a hot dog stand open downtown until 2:30 a.m. after last call when hungry patrons filter outside, looking for the nearest place for a bite to eat. Current city restrictions require food carts to close at 9 p.m.
"We want to put it on Sixth Street between Massachusetts and New Hampshire, next to the Safe Bus stop," said Mandel, a business major.
The idea came to Mandel while visiting his sister at the University of Iowa when he was in high school.
"We would go to the bars at night and want some food," Mandel said. "They had these stands with hot dogs, shish kebabs, walking tacos, and they turned out to be a really popular thing."
He said that once he realized Lawrence didn't have any food carts open as late as the bars because of current regulations, he could make a similarly successful venture locally - not to mention make a few extra bucks.
But the enterprise still has a ways to go. Mandel and Sharkan submitted a letter of intent and a business plan to get their idea
"I do like the entrepreneurial spirit of these two gentlemen," said city commissioner Lance Johnson. "If there's anyway we can, I'd like to encourage that."
started. They then met with city officials to write an ordinance that commissioners will address in the future.
Mandel projected it would cost about $4,000 to start the business. Once things are up and running, he said, he could possibly hire other students and keep the stand open four days a week for four hours each night.
For now, the two sophomores wait for a call to plead their case in front of the commission, which has not scheduled them vet.
"I wouldn't think it would drag out very long, especially with spring coming," Johnson said. "I hope we don't hold up the process too much."
Vice Mayor Mike Amvx said
he didn't know of any existing restriction that would prevent the request from being granted.
"I think new ideas are always difficult for some people to wrangle." Amyx said. "If it works out in locations in other cities, then why not contemplate doing it here?"
RESERVATIONS
Mandel said the downtown business association, Downtown Lawrence, Inc., has expressed concerns about the idea.
Jane Pennington, executive director of Downtown Lawrence, Inc., cited safety and unfair competition as two concerns.
"Most of the trouble that happens downtown late at night is outside of a bar," Pennington said.
"If there is congregation outside of this place, there is the potential to cause problems."
Pennington said restaurants and merchants had to pay rent and property taxes, which puts a sidewalk stand that doesn't have to pay the extra costs at an unfair advantage.
Johnson said that he understood the concerns about safety and that more police could be added to the area to address those concerns.
He and Amyx both said they didn't think Mandel and Sharkan's food cart would be much competition to local restaurants.
"A person who would be purchasing food from a food cart would not be the same client that would stop into a restaurant,"
Amyx said.
He said the best way to ap proach the proposal is through compromise.
"There are reasons why there is a time restriction," Amyx said. "But I think if certain areas are identified where they can sell after hours, then maybe that's how we can come to a middle ground."
Despite the controversy that has surfaced from his plan, Mandel said he was still hopeful it would succeed.
He also said the stand would give downtown more of a college-town vibe.
"I'm kind of surprised Kansas doesn't already have it," he said.
— Edited by Jesse Rangel
ATHLETICS
Class checkers make sure student athletes attend class
BY ELLIOT METZ emetz@kansan.com
Although Don Gardner doesn't have a degree from the University, he's spent more time hiking across campus than any student.
Gardner is one of the Athletic Department's class checkers who ensure athletes regularly attend classes.
"To do this job, you've gotta like the University of Kansas, you've gotta like athletes and you've gotta like walking." Gardner said.
KU Athletics' team of class checkers is made up of 10 retired individuals from the Lawrence community who make sure athletes attend class. Checkers wait outside classrooms for athletes, who are then expected to sign in on a clip board. The checkers are paid part-time employees of the department, and they work an average of 18 to 20 hours a week.
According to Paul Buskirk, associate athletics director in Student Athlete Support Services, the first
"When we go to recruit in living rooms, there are promises made to parents about the expectations of being a student athlete," Buskirk said. "The coaches were the ones who have been very consistently driving the process."
efforts to make sure athletes were going to class began in 1995. It started as student assistants in the department spot checking a few of the athletes' classes. But in 2003, the coaches decided they wanted a more comprehensive process.
Gardner, a former trainer and security officer for the department in the 1980s, began to contact friends he had met through his son's Boy Scout troop and other
Bruce Guy, a class checker for the Athletics Department, waits outside a classroom Wednesday in Fraser Hall for a student athlete. The department employs class checkers to make sure athletes regularly go to class.
He then turned to his friend Gardner to recruit for the department. Gardner had his own reasons for taking this particular job.
"When I went here, I lived with football players, and they cut class a lot," Gardner said. "This has been an awesome program. It would have helped me and a lot of the players."
Howard Ting/KANSAN
"I had retired from Hallmark
activities to help with the program.
and I needed something to do" Ken Baldwin, one of the class checkers, said. "So I called up Don
SEE CHECKERS ON PAGE 3A
STUDENT SENATE
Finance passes media fee cut
BY ERIN BROWN
ebrown@kansan.com
Members of the Student Senate Finance Committee voted 7-3 Wednesday to cut $1.70 from the $4 campus media fee and to eliminate the allocation of funds to The University Daily Kansan.
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
The cut would result in a loss of $83,200 for The Kansan, about 8 percent of its $1.18 million annual operating budget. The remainder of the
Stephen Montemayor responds to the vote.
PAGE 5A
budget is used to finance printing and distribution costs and to pay employees. Senate would redistribute the fee money to increase the student health and transportation operation fees.
A $1 cut to the newspaper readership fee that passed the full Senate last semester is also included in the Senate's reallocation bill. Because that cut passed after the start of the fiscal year, it was held until this bill.
The full Senate will debate and vote on the bill to cut the media fee March 24.
This is the only new cut proposed to the $423.35 semester student fees.
Mason Heilman, student body president, requested the media fee cut, but he was not present at the finance committee meeting. Alex Earles, student executive committee chairman, spoke in favor of the cut and read a memo from Heilman: "I, Mason Heilman, will not sign any campus fee review bill which does not include a complete elimination of any funding to any media outlet which actively reports on the activities of Student Senate"
Heilman said Tuesday he wanted to cut funding to The Kansan because he was dissatisfied with the relationship between the newspaper and Student Senate.
"To me, this is one of the most inappropriate relationships Student Senate has with any other outside group" he said Tuesday.
The student media fee currently funds The Kansan, JKHK-FM, Kiosk magazine, Comma Splice magazine and KU Filmworks. KUJH-TV doesn't receive media fee funding, but it is partially
SEE FEE ON PAGE 3A
To see a breakdown of student fees visit kansan.com.
watch a video of Wednesday's media fee debate at kansan.com/ videos.
Watch a video of
index
Classifieds...3B Opinion...5A
Crossword...4A Sports...1B
Horoscopes...4A Sudoku...4A
All contents, unless stated otherwise, © 2010 The University Daily Kansan
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