University Daily Kansan / Wednesday, June 8, 1988
Campus/Area
3
Union renovation on schedule
Both bookstores to be on level 3
By Linda Gaumnitz Kansan staff writer
As the Kansas Union renovation continues, students can expect to see the consolidation of the Oread Book Shop and the Textbook Department onto level three completed in August, said James Long, the Union's director.
"Right now, plans for remodeling are on schedule," Long said. "We've run into no problems with construction or the budget."
Plans for remodeling the bookstores include moving the Oread Book Shop from level four and the Textbook Department from the basement, so that all merchandise and services will be located on level two.
William Getz, Oread Book Shop supervisor, said the consolidation would be more convenient for students and employees.
"Students won't have to go between level two and level four in order to get all their books," he said. "We'll be open more hours on the weekend, whenever the main bookstore is open."
Long said that upon completion of level three, the contractors would start rebuilding level four, where student organizations would be based. He projected that level four would be finished in January, ending Phase One of the renovation.
"Phase Two will be started sometime in the future," Long said. "We haven't set a definite date."
Long said Phase Two consisted of expanding office space for Student Union Activities, administration and existing services.
"The four primary reasons for starting renovation on the Union were to build a state-of-the-art food service, to facilitate the necessary updating of the mechanical systems, to make more effective use of the space available for the bookstores and to provide space where the staff organizations and student organizations could be situated." he said.
"I think it's going very well. We've had very good cooperation from our users. I couldn't be more complimentary to the students and community for putting up with us,"
A renovation worker paints air ducts on level two of the Kansas Union.
Increase in budget adds more courses
Schedule strong again, officials save
Bv Linda Gaumnitz
Kansan staff writer
Summer courses absent from last year's timetable, victims of a 3.8 percent cut in University of Kansas funds, reappeared in the summer schedule this year.
Last summer, budget cuts resulted in about 25 percent of the summer courses being dropped from the schedule.
James B. Carothers, associate dean of liberal arts and sciences, said that no courses had to be cut this year; in fact, all courses dropped from the 1987 schedule were reinstated.
"We are working more or less on a full budget, so we were able to offer more courses this summer," he said.
Carothers said that the courses back in the schedule were those with heavy enrollment during the academic year, such as mathematics. English, political science and language courses
Bruce A. Lindvall, director of the office of admissions, said that in
January 1987, the governor and the Legislature called for reduction in money allocated to the state universities, including a $3.17 million cut to KU's Lawrence campus, to help prevent the state from going into debt.
"The recission came when many of the colleges were already spending a lot of money," Lindvall said. "It was essentially taking money away that had already been allocated. We couldn't cut salaries, so cutting classes was another option. About half of the courses offered in the summer of 1986 were dropped."
1960 Brower R. Burchill, associate vice chancellor for academic affairs, said that although the course selection was back, the difference it made in summer enrollment wouldn't show up until the final count is taken in August.
"Today, I've already talked to some students who haven't been able to get into the classes they wanted," Burchill said. "Even with the added classes, we aren't able to accommodate all the students who enroll."
New Jersey company proposes river plaza
Bv Debbie Bengtson
Kansan staff writer
A new riverfront retail project may break ground as early as September if the city approves the proposal.
The Chelsea Group, a New Jersey development firm, proposed the project Thursday, and the proposal has met with little opposition. The Lawrence City Commission will hold formal debate on the proposal later this month.
The proposal, named the Kansas River Plaza, is for 150,000 square feet of factory outlets and restaurants by the Kansas River. All but two of the existing buildings of the Bowersock Mills and Power Co., Sixth and New York streets, would be taken down.
The two remaining buildings would be refurbished, and the new buildings would be patterned after them.
one city commissioner and a member of the Downtown Improvement Committee have said they supported the project.
Mayor Bob Schumm said the project would continue to build
Lawrence in a beneficial and unique way, would not hurt downtown retail and would clean up the riverfront area.
"It will be a tremendous asset," he said. "It doesn't displace anyone, and it gets rid of an eyesore."
Myles Schachter, a member of the DIC, said the project would bring more than 400 jobs into the area and also would pull in regional shoppers.
"There is a factory outlet I am familiar with in Saratoga, New York, that's about four hours away from New York City," Schachter said. "People from the city come there all the time."
City commission turns down retail project for downtown Fourth rejection brings economic plan to end, supporters say Mall developer sues the city
Other citizens and groups also have shown their support. The Lawrence Preservation Alliance has supported the idea because the project maintains and preserves the character of the buildings.
The East Lawrence Improvement Association has talked to Schachter about the concern of traffic access in East Lawrence, but the association is supportive of the project, he said.
Kansan staff writer
By Debbie Bengtson
Mayor Bob Schumm and commissioners Sandra Praeger and Mike Amyx opposed the plan. Commissioners Dennis Constance and Mike Rundle supported it.
Lawrence's fourth attempt in this decade to finance a downtown retail project was rejected May 24 by the City Commission by a 3-2 vote. Many involved said this would be the last attempt to finance a retail project in the downtown area for a long time.
Amyx had little comment about the vote, but said the issue would not resurface.
saw as far as I am concerned the idea is dead," he said.
Burdett Loomis, chairman of the Downtown Improvement Committee, which formulated the plan, said the commission did not give the process a chance to work.
"We were cut off at the knees, 'ne said. The 15-member committee was established in
chance to work.
"We were cut off at the knees," he said.
June 1987 by the commission. It planned to finance the project with a benefit district extending from Sixth to 11th streets and involving both sides of New Hampshire and Vermont streets.
A benefit district involves assessing a tax on businesses or residents of a certain defined area and using the money for improvements in that area.
area. The commission's decision surprised some. Marilyn Bittenbender, a member of the DIC, said she and other committee members were shocked.
she said. "We still are baffled," she said. "We should have been told at an earlier stage if something wasn't right."
right.
Bittenbender said the committee reported every month to the commission. In November, the commission asked the DIC to revise the benefit district. The DIC cut the assessment level from $8.8 million to $5.5 million.
"We were given the green light the whole way." Bittenbender said. "The only snag was the benefit district, and we redid that."
Bittenden said the DIC had no more plans for a downtown retail project.
Sommini, who opposed the project, said it was too large for its scope of development and would change the makeup of downtown Lawrence.
"It would change the ambiance of downtown, of it being quiet and small," he said.
If doing question 10, He also said the taxes assessed would be a burden on the downtown merchants and Lawrence citizens.
Praeger, who also opposed the financing plan, stressed the size of the project. She said a large-scale project, such as the one proposed, had little chance of working in Lawrence.
chance to succeed in business and Rundle, supporters of the plan, said it should have been given more consideration before being put to a vote. Constance said there should have been a public vote.
"A public vote could get input from several thousand citizens," he said. "All we got was input from hundreds of citizens."
Jacobs, Visconi and Jacobs of Cleveland, Ohio asserts that the city of Lawrence has discriminated against its plan to build a suburban mall, saying that Lawrence has not consistently abided by Plan 95.
The suit concerns the developer's proposal to build a shopping mall at Iowa Street and Armstrong Road. It is JVJ's third attempt to develop a mall in Lawrence.
The city adopted Plan 95 in 1976. The plan stipulates how the city should grow commercially and industrially. Also, it says the retail
An Ohio developer is suing the city of Lawrence because the city refused a rezoning request for a suburban mall.
Jacobs, Visconsi and Jacobs asserts that the city of Lawrence has discriminated against its plan to build a suburban mall.
city commissioner Mike Rundle said the city-appointed Downtown Improvement Committee reported that a suburban mall would hurt downtown retail.
center in Douglas County should be downtown Lawrence.
Bill Fullington, director of Marketing Services of Jacobs, Visconsi and Jacobs, was unavailable for comment.
By a Kansan reporter
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