The Chronicle
Tuesday, September 11, 2001
Partly Cloudy High 82, Low 59 www.chronicle.duke.edu Vol. 97, No. 13
Williams, Part 2 High school senior Shelden Williams committed to playing basketball for Duke yesterday. See page 9
THE INDEPENDENT DAILY AT DUKE UNIVERSITY
Oak Room undergoes extensive renovations ARAMARK plans menu changes By VICTORIA KAPLAN The Chronicle
After vast undergoing changes to both its design and menu, the Oak Room will reopen Oct. 1 under the management of ARAMARK Corp. and local restaurateur Maggie Radzwiller, Trinity ’77. The physical renovations, which include the installation of a wine bar in the restaurant’s waiting area, as well as new furniture, carpet and walls, are meant to create an “upscale atmosphere,” said senior Jason Freedman, co-chair of the Duke University Student Dining AdJESSICAWESTAHE CHRONICLE visory Committee. Dave Randolph, ARAWAYNE TISSOT helps renovate the Oak Room, which this summer was taken over by ARAMARK Corp. Officials plan MARK’s district manager for to add a wine bar to the restaurant and replace the furniture and carpeting.
County requests hotel tax increase
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By LUCAS SCHAFER The Chronicle
By MATT ATWOOD
See HOTEL TAX on page
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Dry but not dull
The Durham Board of County Commissioners unanimously agreed to ask the state Legislature for the authority to increase the hotel occupancy tax by 1 percent. The Durham Board of County Commissioners became the second local legislative body to request authority to increase the hotel occupancy tax by 1 percent Monday night, agreeing in spirit with a proposal from the City of Durham. The county commissioners voted 5-0 to ask the state Legislature for permission to increase the tax beginning in January to fund about half of the cost of a proposed 5,000-seat performing arts theater downtown. “We have a stake in the future of downtown Durham,” County Manager Mike Ruffin said. “This particular project, we believe, could be pivotal for the future of downtown Durham.” The commissioners agreed to divide the revenue roughly along lines proposed Monday afternoon by City Manager Marcia Conner. Under Conner’s plan, the city would use $1.4 million of the tax revenues annually for half of the estimated $2.8 million debt payments on the theater, beginning in July 2003. The remainder ofthe increased revenues, up to $500,000, would go to the county to pay for an existing debt on the Museum of Life and Science. But during the first year and a half of the tax increase, $700,000 would go to the Durham Convention and Visitors Bureau to market the city. “It’s priming the pump,” Shelly Green, DCVB executive vice president for marketing, told the commissioners. “It’s taking that money to draw visitors to Durham who will spend money and stay in hotels.” The DCVB had long opposed the tax, favoring a pre-
Duke, described the Oak Room’s new look as “eclectic but in keeping with the traditional Oak Room style. It will have a much fresher look.” There will be fewer dishes on the menu, but all of them will be made from scratch, whereas in the past some dishes were pre-made, Randolph said. “We’re talking about producing completely fresh product,” Radzwiller said. “I’ve spoken with people in the Oak Room who wouldn’t ever eat there. Doing fewer items and making them all ‘a hit’ is where it’s at. Who wants
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years, the only shots Mark Pike ever took were as a player on his high school soccer team. But that hasn’t prevented the sophomore, a Wayne Manor resident, from being written up for alcohol violations twice. That’s because Pike, an extremely moderate drinker who abstained from alcohol for most of his freshman year, was twice caught sober in a room with boozing freshmen. “The first time, the dean just took me off the list of people being reprimanded,” recalled Pike. “But the second time, I had to go and talk with him so he could make sure I was a clean kid. People had to vouch for me, saying, ‘Mark Pike, he takes shots of water, not vodka.’” Pike, like a growing number of Duke students, didn’t drink .e does drink occasionally ke winning the Nation-luction into the world .en, I’d still call myself a non-drinker. I’m still very inexperienced.” Pike’s decision may be indicative of a national � trend. According to a 1999 study by the Harvard School of Public Health, which surveyed 14,000 students at over 100 colleges and universities, 19 percent abstain from alcohol. Only 15.4 percent said they abstained when the HSPH conducted a similar survey in 1993. Like many non-drinkers on can pus, Pike’s choice is not a religious one. “I’ve never really had an epiphany where I said to myself, ‘l’m not going to drink from now on.’ It was just a value I’ve always had.” See NON-DRINKERS on page 8 � *
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When David Jarmul assumes his position as assistant vice president for communications, he will also be responsible for coordinating the University’s websites. See page 4
Duke Student Government announced an election error late last night, admitting that one East Campus legislative candidate was improperly declared a loser. See page 4
The Graduate and Professional Student Council held its first meeting Monday night and began discussing the issue of social programming. See page 6