9-11-19

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The Pitt News

T h e i n d e p e n d e n t s t ude nt ne w spap e r of t he U niversity of Pittsburgh | PIttnews.com | September 11, 2019 ­| Volume 110 | Issue 21

SGB PROVIDES UPDATE ON STUDENT ORG TASK FORCE

TRADING TRINKETS AND TRAVEL STORIES

Emily Drzymalski Staff Writer

Jordan Snyder, founder of the Long Way Trading Company, and senior marketing major Jay Ciccolini share travel experiences outside the William Pitt Union on Tuesday afternoon at a pop-up shop selling handmade goods from around the world. Sarah Cutshall | visual editor

200 STUDENT ATHLETES MOVE INTO BRIDGE ON FORBES Nicole Marzzacco Staff Writer

The newly opened Bridge on Forbes could easily be mistaken for a hotel, with tall glass windows, bright yellow lights and a lounge furnished with couches and large wooden tables. But the building located between Halket Street and McKee Place is actually a luxury apartment complex geared toward students in the area. And while Pitt students of any persuasion are welcome to apply for a lease, a certain number of student athletes are guaranteed a place to stay there, starting this year. While anyone — student or non-student — can rent an apartment in the building, Pitt is leasing 87 of the building’s 197 apartments, creating a “master lease” for student athletes. This year, the leased units are occupied by 230 student athletes, community assistants and a community director. The upscale

building features a 24-hour gym and study rooms that residents can book. University spokesperson Kevin Zwick said Monday that the living arrangement will “benefit recruitment efforts” by allowing Pitt to cultivate a “stronger community” among student athletes. “This plan also allowed Pitt to open up needed additional space in Sutherland Hall to provide more housing for incoming first-year students,” Zwick wrote. “It also made more living space available for​ returning undergraduate students wishing to remain on campus.” Pitt approved the three-year lease of the apartments in February, citing “increased demand” for housing as the student population grows. Pitt’s threeyear lease runs a total of $8,790,567 — $2,631,310 for this year, including one rent-free month, $3,007,719 for the second year and $3,151,538 for the third.

Zwick did not respond to questions asking how much each athlete is paying the University to live at the Bridge. Another University spokesman, Joe Miksch, said in February that the apartments would be priced similarly to Pitt’s other apartment-style living options like Bouquet Gardens, where a single apartment costs $4,250 per semester to rent. Renters at the Bridge have the option of choosing from one-, two- or three-bedroom pre-furnished apartments. For those not paying through the University’s master lease, a one-bedroom apartment at The Bridge costs about $1,750 per month. A space in a two-bedroom starts at $1,135 per month, and a space in a three-bedroom starts at $1,005 per month. Zwick noted that although Pitt leases additional housing to accommodate students “when necesSee Bridge on page 3

At its second public meeting of the year Tuesday night, Student Government Board provided an update on a recently announced student task force, as well as several new upcoming initiatives. SGB President Zechariah Brown announced Friday that SGB will form a task force with student organization leaders to address new naming guidelines that will affect many student groups at Pitt. He added Tuesday that SGB Executive Vice President Anaïs Peterson, SGB member Eric Macadangdang, SGB’s Judicial Committee and its chair, Grace Nelson, will all serve on the task force. Brown said he reached out on Tuesday to 13 of the hundreds of clubs that could be affected by the change and is in the process of scheduling the task force’s first meeting. SORC announced two weeks ago that beginning fall 2020, its registration guidelines would prohibit the names of independent student organizations from including University trademarks or wordmarks like “Pitt” and “Panther,” instead encouraging clubs to use phrases such as “at Pitt” or “at the University of Pittsburgh.” At the time the guideline changes were announced, University spokesperson Meg Ringler said the changes followed a summer audit of current SORC guidelines and student organization names that determined many student organizations were not in compliance with existing University policy. Brown, Peterson and Macadangdang met Friday with Associate Dean of Students and Director of Student Life Linda WilliamsSee SGB on page 3


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