Wednesday June 8,1988
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Published since 1889 by the students of the University of Kansas
Vol. 98, No. 146 (USPS 650-640)
Frat may be charged for violating fire code
By Karen Boring
Kansan staff writer
City Prosecutor Jerry Little said yesterday he would file charges against the Triangle fraternity next week for failure to comply with city fire codes.
Jim McSain, Lawrence fire chief,
said in a videotaped press conference
on May 5 that after the April 26, 1987,
fire at the Sigma Phi Epius fraternity
house, the Lawrence Fire
Department developed a program to
bring all KU greek houses into compliance with the fire code.
The department inspected the 37 active Greek houses in June and July 1987, said Fire Marshal Rich Barr. The corporation board of each house was given a list of violations and was required to turn in plans of compliance, including a schedule for completion, by January 1988. A corporation board is a group of alumni that acts as landlord of the house.
The Triangle board turned in a statement to Barr, asserting that all required changes had been made, Little said. However, when the fire marshal inspected the Triangle house on May 2, he found that none of the changes had been made.
"The only course of action that the
fire department is interested in with the Triangle house is prosecution." Little said. "The next step is filing charges against that fraternity."
Ron Gast, Triangle corporation board president, said a new board, including himself, was elected in February and that the original plan of compliance had been submitted by the former board. Gast said he and other board members learned of the fire-code problems from the house's student officers after the May inspection.
The board is taking bids so it can make a new plan of compliance. Gast said. He anticipated no problems with meeting the December deadline.
"We want to get costs in mind first," he said. "I think we will have a firm plan by this summer and have our work completed by September."
Five other greek houses also are under investigation by the city prosecution.
The Alpha Kappa Lambda andLambda Chi Alpha fraternities and theAlpha Chi Omega sorority have not come to agreement with the fire department on plans of compliance with the fire code, Little said. The
Tau Kappa Epsilon and Phi Kappa Tau fraternities also have been submitted for investigation.
"They either have not submitted plans of compliance or the compliance time frame is not acceptable." Little said. "What I'm trying to do is to open the lines of communication."
The project involves obliterating grandfather clauses, under which older structures do not to have to comply with fire codes enacted after they were built, he said.
Normally, the fire department inspects greek houses twice a year to ensure that existing fire equipment is working properly. Barr said. The present fire-code project, however, involves seeing that the existing equipment adequately complies with today's fire code.
"If they do not involve sprinkler systems, because sprinkler systems are a very large project from a structural standpoint, we are requiring those plans of compliance to be completed by December 1988," Barr said at the press conference. "If they involved sprinkler systems, then we extended that deadline by one year."
PLEASE UNLOAD NOW.
Give it a twirl
Terri Maness, Lawrence resident, twirls batons with glow sticks attached to the ends. Maness entertained golfers during the Moonshine Night Golf Tournament on Saturday night at the Orchards Executive Golf Course. The tournament was a benefit for the Achievement Place Boys' Home.
Water safe, tests indicate
Cancer-causing chemical no longer present at Lindley
Kansan staff writer
By Monica Hayde
For two weeks, signs were posted inside and outside Lindley Hall warning people not to drink the water in the building. On Friday, they were removed.
Warning notices were posted in the building on May 20 after state and University inspectors found high levels of a cancer-causing chemical in the water in Room 107. But the latest tests have shown that no health hazard exists, a University statement released Saturday said.
Bearse said it was unlikely the water in any other campus buildings was contaminated.
"Tests have not been run campus-wide, but they are in the process of being run," he said. "However, the water coming into Lindley Hall is of acceptable quality, so the assumption is it's probably of acceptable quality going into all the other buildings."
Steve Cater, University environment, health and safety officer, said no one knew why such an elevated level of ethylene dichloride was in the water
Official reverses Hoch ruling
By Paula Messbarger
A state fire official who said in April that Hoch Auditorium might have to be closed because of fire hazards now says it is a safe building.
Kansan staff writer
Paul Markley, who is chief of the fire prevention division for the state fire marshal's office, said after his April inspection of Hoch that the 61-year-old building was too dangerous to use because of fire-code violations.
But Markley said Monday Hoch is
ENTERTAINMENT
With the release of their 10th album, 'Naked,' America's most cerebral dance band is exploring new realms of creativity and sales
BY RON GIVENS
rink orders before the interview begins
Talking Heads Talk
A glass of a red house wine—a 1985 Shafer merlot—for Tina Weymouth, 37, bass player. She wears a multicolored pulover blouse with horizontal stripes, alternating between gray and various other muted colors, over a
A voda-k Stoilchnaya—and grapefruit juice
(to Chris Frantz, 36, drummet. We blackened 84,
12, and 50 shots.)
tween gray and various other muted colors, over a black turtleneck sweater dress.
A vodka—Stolichnaya—and grapefruit juice for David Byrne, 35, guitar player and singer. He wears a white cotton shirt, buttoned at the neck, and a dark-blue-and-kelly green plaid blazer, with three decorative pins on the left lapel (a gold leaf, a stylized red lion and a commemorative for Australia's Ayers Rock), blue jeans.
A glass of water for Jerry Harrison, 39, guitar and keyboard player. He wears a black-and-gray knit shirt with a crosshatched pattern, unbuttoned at the neck, black jeans.
Weymouth: We're at the point where, suddenly,
we're big. At least that's what our business managers are telling us. I don't know when it happened, but we are.
Talking Heads: 88. Thirteen years after David Byrne, Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth coalesced into a trio, and 11 years after they added Jerry Harrison and made their first record. America's most cerebral dance band seems to have broken the mega-barrier. Their 10th album, "Naked," has produced an ovation of praise, louder and larger than even this critically favored band usually considered the top single from the record, has been all over the radio since it came out in mid-March. Head Pastals all-
Franzt: So big that we're busting out of our trousers.
Early times (1978): I 'never thought Talking Heads would be as successful as it has', says Harrison. I 'thought we were too strange'
R NEWSWEEK ON CAMPUS
bums have sold very well, and maintained their appeal as time went on, but "Naked" promises to make the band huge.
Whether or not they care about their bigness, they don't have time to enjoy it. For the past year, in addition to producing "Naked," the separate Heads have worked on an amazing number of creative endeavors outside the framework of the band. Harrison has produced the second BoDeans album, coproduced the debut album by Milwaukee rockers Semi-Tiwang, finished recording his second solo album, "Casual Gods," figured out a concept for its cover and directed a video for its first single, "Rev It Up." Frantz and Weymouth have recorded, on and off, for their third solo album, written two songs for the movie "Sierra" and produced the music for "Come Party." Byrne has composed five pieces of music for the film, "The Last Emperor"; directed some interconnecting footage for a new home-video compilation of Talking Heads videos, "Storytelling Giant," and traveled to Europe while writing and seeking funding for a feature-length movie he wants to direct called "The Forest."
classes and con-
They've been so busy, in fact, that they didn't have time to produce a video for "Nothing But Flowers" until well after the song came out. In late February they got together briefly to do some publicity for "Naked," but their attention was clearly on outside projects as well. Frantz and Weymouth were just about to enter the studio for two weeks of intensive recording for their own group, Tom Tom Club. Harrison was in rehearsal for a four-month tour of the Northeast with his own band, Casual Gods. Byron was on the verge of flying to Los Angeles to write and to pursue money for his movie.
Entree orders and an appraisal of pop music today
Byrne (crab cakes): In a way "Naked" expresses our dissatisfaction with the current shape of popular music, mainly in America. What's on the Top 10 and Top 40. I never listen to it. I haven't listened to it in years. Maybe there's something good in there. But it's not worth wading through the crap to find it. I spend my better listening to other things. To me it just has no relevance to people's
MAY 1988
Paul Markley
sited the lack of end of a sprinkge area. Marko be closed corrected the ber. However, versity officials informed there actor at Hoch, een, that cony emergency
'Hoch is safe as is. The
8
emergency lights are in operation.
' Markley said.
s are in opera-
state fire marshal's office
main concerns when inspecting a building: fire alarms, clear exits and emergency lighting that comes on when the power goes off. Hoch has all three. Markley said.
He said not having a sprinkler system above the stage would not be possible.
office has three
o delete this either, because an alternative
played during
is it another
"The sprinklers are there to protect the buildings," he said. "We care about the buildings, but our main concern is getting the people out."
v no potential h music in the
"There is an emergency lighting system, and its been there for at least 15 years," he said. "The problem was, no one asked the right person."
person, I've ns open," he m concerned. HK. I have no
Hoch Auditorium once was used as the home court for the Jayhawks basketball team until Allen Field House was dedicated in 1955. Hoch has had a long history of safety and structural problems, which led to the establishment of a building within the performing arts center within the next few years.
nior and disc she was not decision would
Tom Anderson, director of facilities operations, said the problem with the original inspection probably was a result of a KU Facilities and Operations employee who was sent with Markley on the inspection. Anderson said it was common practice for KU employees to assist the fire marshals during inspections. He said the employee probably was not familiar with Hoch and its lighting system.
James Modig, campus director of facilities planning, said his office and a committee appointed by Judith Ramaley, executive vice chancellor, are reviewing possibilities for using Hoch once the new performing arts building is completed. Modig said some suggestions were offices, classrooms or an addition to the new science library.
"We're looking for the general needs of the camus." Modig said.
As for the near future, not much will be done to Hoch, he said. Some of the stonework will be repaired this year under the fiscal year 1988 budget. But there will be no projects for the fiscal year of 1989 because the Board of Regents did not approve the requests.
The Associated Press
Dukakis finishes with nomination
Michael Dukakis clinched the Democratic presidential nomination with a four-state flourish Tuesday night and forecast a "golden opportunity" to win the White House in 1988. Republican George Bush labeled himself the underdog heading into the fall campaign but said, "I'm fighting back."
Dukakis dominated Jesse Jackson coast to coast on the final night of a grueling Democratic primary marathon. He was winning primaries in New Jersey, Montana, New Mexico and California by margins of 2-to-1 or more.
The three-term Massachusetts governor began the night needing about 150 delegates to achieve a mathematical lock on the nomination. He was winning more than 131 in New Jersey, Montana and New Mexico combined, and early returns from California showed him ahead for more than 200 delegates.
Dukakis emerged as the winner of the Democratic primary marathon and owner of a lead over Bush in the nationwide public opinion polls. But Bush, who wrapped up the GOP nomination six weeks ago, holds formidable Electoral College advantages in the South and West, and Republicans have won four of the last five presidential elections.
Thus, the prospect is for a close general election, and Bush and Dukakis seemed to share an eagerness to begin.
"My friends, what a golden opportunity this is for us," Dukatis said as he savored his nominating triumph in a speech in California. He pledged to use his campaign to stand up for factory workers thrown out of their jobs with no warning, to ease the burden of families hit by medical bills and to "share the rage" of those living in neighborhoods threatened by drugs.
"Every day between now and November, the American people will want to hear how we intend to build a strong and vibrant future for our country," he said. "They aren't interested in slashing attacks: They want to judge our positive ideas for change."
Bush pushed uncontested primary victories in all four states and said, "I think I can overcome this deficit (in the polls)," he said.
In a television interview, he likened Dukakis to Walter Mondale, the landslide Democratic loser in 1984, for refusing to rule out a tax increase. "I'll rule it out," Bush said in an interview with CBS, and rely on a spending freeze to reduce the deficit.
He decried the "gloom and doom" that he said was emanating from the Democrats and said the polls would change as he began to establish his own political identity. "When we get through in the fall talking about opportunity and peace and numbers of jobs and how much better things are and what I'll do to keep it that way, I think I can overcome that deficit," he said.