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TEXAS STATE UNIVERSITY SAN MARCOS
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THURSDAY
FEBRUARY 9, 2006
VOLUME 95, ISSUE 52
Bayou Homecoming
Student returns to New Orleans home after Hurricane Katrina By Ashley Richards The University Star
Ashley Richards/Star photo
instead it was speeding toward New Orleans and hit the day Marcus would have returned. Editor’s Note: Two University Star “It had taken a long route through reporters traveled to New Orleans the Gulf and about halfway through from Feb. 2 to 4 to spend 24 hours in- my visit it was looking like maybe I vestigating the current state of affairs (didn’t) want to go back,” Marcus in the city. These said. stories are part of While Marcus a series about the said he does not ongoing reconhave an exciting struction efforts. evacuation story to tell, he knows plenStrolling ty of New Orleans through the residents who do. southern part During the chaos of Central City of the hurricane in New Orleans, and levee problems Nolan Marcus Marcus used Interreflected on his net resources such not-so-different as NOLA.com, a —Nolan Marcus Web site affiliated lifestyle since his return to the postNew Orleans resident with the New OrKatrina neighborleans newspaper hood. The Times-PicaAs he walked down 8th Street, yune, to try and find friends who past the typical New Orleans houses were scattered after evacuating. with wooden stairs leading to an Marcus was able to look at satellite old-fashioned patio and a creaking images on the Internet of his apartscreen door decorated with Mardi ment, and he spoke with his landGras beads and wreaths, Marcus lord, who ensured him the damage made note of the minimal damage was minimal. his part of the city endured. “I got a hold of a satellite imag“This is pretty much what it was ing Web site that gave me a pretty like before I left here,” Marcus said. clear picture of the day of the worst “There’s a little more rebuilding flooding and I could still see the here but no flooding.” grass around the apartment,” MarDue to the higher elevation of cus said. “Then I talked to my landCentral City and surrounding areas lord, and he said everything was he said the flooding caused by the fine.” levee breach stopped barely north of Although Marcus planned on takhis apartment. ing the fall semester off from Loyola A week before Labor Day, Marcus University for financial reasons, he traveled to Seguin to celebrate his knew the hurricane would have him 30th birthday on the river, where his remaining in Texas longer than exmother works. After visiting family, pected, and he had the resources to he was scheduled to return home afford a semester at Texas State. on Aug. 29, until word came that Arriving two weeks late, Marcus Katrina would not circle the Gulf said getting accepted into Texas of Mexico and return to Florida; State was a breeze and the adminis-
HOME SWEET HOME: (Right) Residents of Lakefront tried to return to their homes but had to rely on FEMA for accommodations. This house is on Harrison Avenue, and despite evidence of its owner’s return, there is no sign of renovation inside. (Below) Nolan Marcus, a Loyolla University student displaced by Hurricane Katrina, returned to New Orleans after a semester at Texas State.
he biggest “T change I would say is it’s
no longer the city that doesn’t sleep. Things close now, which they didn’t used to.”
Photo courtesy of Sue Weill
tration was inviting. “I enjoyed it. The walking up and down the hills comes to mind,” Marcus said with a smile, also saying that he missed the walks because the hills were shaping up his legs. While at school in San Marcos he rented an apartment at The Zone and took mass communication classes that would be useful towards his degree in communications at Loyola. Marcus took a course with Susan Weill, assistant professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication, and she became interested in his personality and eagerness to learn. Weill said she was happy to see the university accepting the displaced students. “Nolan is an avid news junkie and keeps up with world events,” Weill said in an e-mail. “A student like that is always interesting to have in the classroom.” At Loyola, Marcus also participates in a language program where he studies German, Russian and Arabic, which he said will make him more competitive in the field if he chooses to go into reporting. Three of Marcus’ cousins graduSee HOME, page 4
University Star reporter views disaster first-hand Editor’s Note: Two University Star reporters traveled to New Orleans from Feb. 2 to 4 to spend 24 hours investigating the current state of affairs in the city. These stories are part of a series about the ongoing reconstruction efforts.
I want to say there are two cities of New Orleans. There is the high ground, Noah’s Ark of the Crescent City, the neighborhoods God smiled upon, and there are lowlands that Katrina washed away. There aren’t two cities. There is one city, and there is a wasteland. There is the part of town that either remained untouched or had residents affluent enough to return and begin repairs on their homes without Federal Emergency Management Agency checks. Then there is the wasteland, where August was the cruelest month. The wasteland used to have many names: East New Orleans, the Lower 9th Ward, Chalmette, Gentilly, Lakefront. Now all it has are silt-covered cars, garbage and
City Council approves luxury hotel, $20 million conference center project By Clayton Medford The University Star The San Marcos City Council approved the master development agreement with JQH-San Marcos Development, LLC to build an 80,000-squarefoot conference center and an upscale hotel on Interstate 35 at McCarty Lane on Tuesday. The city entered into a publicprivate partnership with John Q. Hammons Hotels, which will build the $40 million Embassy Suites hotel adjacent to the city’s $20 million conference center.
The hotel will be a full-service luxury facility with 275 guest suites, 10 stories, a day spa, a restaurant and other luxury amenities, according to the presentation given by City Manager Dan O’Leary. O’Leary told the council about the other Hammons properties he has toured. “All John Q. Hammons hotels have indoor atriums and glass elevators,” O’Leary said. “He just won’t build one without that design.” The council’s debate focused on funding the conference cen-
ter. O’Leary told the council that the city will sell a bond of slightly more than $20 million, the current projected cost of the center. The bond will be paid off in 25 years with Hammons paying 30 percent of the annual debt payments. To help pay off the city’s debt, a tax reinvestment zone will be created to contribute to the annual debt payments. Mayor Susan Narvaiz made it clear to the council that raising property taxes to cover the shortfall between the tax revenue generated by the facility and the bond pay-
JASON BUCH Assistant News Editor
The city is considering lane reductions that will create room for additional parking spaces in San Marcos’ downtown district. The lane reductions would affect Guadalupe Street and LBJ Drive between MLK Street and University Drive. The streets connect Interstate 35 to the downtown area of the city. The proposed reductions stand to create approximately 40 new parking spaces. Richard Mendoza, director of public works, said a main reason for the lane reduction is to improve pedestrian safety.
“It would reduce the lane numbers from three to two, which reduces the number of lanes pedestrians would have to cross,” Mendoza said. He said the additional room on the street would allow not only additional parking spaces, but would also change the spaces from parallel to angled. The idea for the lane reduction originated from the San Marcos Downtown Association. Larry Rasco, association president, said the association has recommended the lane reduction to the city to improve both safety and parking downtown. “The change will allow an
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additional number of parking spaces on both Guadalupe and LBJ, and they will be longer for a better turn ratio,” Rasco said. Mendoza acknowledged that fewer lanes may have the potential to increase traffic congestion. He said the city will evaluate potential effects before making a decision. “We have some modeling software that we will program to try to determine possible effects,” Mendoza said. He said the city has other projects in progress to help decrease congestion in the city, such as the traffic light synchronization project that is scheduled to be finished by the
ments is “off the table.” The city expects to generate around $300,000 annually in hotel occupancy taxes from the new property. The city’s hotels currently generate around $800,000 in total annual tax revenue. Council member John Thomaides believes that the facility will spur further development near the site. “I really think this development in this area is going to be a catalyst in that area, which
By Eloise Martin The University Star Rumors of widespread age requirement changes in downtown San Marcos bars cropped up after the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission placed several bars under investigation in an effort to reduce both underage drinking and driving while intoxicated citations. TABC Sgt. Pete Champion said the investigations in San Marcos
See COUNCIL, page 3
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Inside
UNIVERSITY SAN MARCOS
See AGE, page 3
Brynn Leggett/ Star feature photo
See LANES, page 3
TEXAS STATE
are part of Operation Last Call, a program that began in September and aims to reduce the number of driving while intoxicated citations. The investigations began after TABC contacted the San Marcos Police Department and received information about pending cases at downtown clubs. “We contacted SMPD and they were able to pull up the number
CHECKING IT TWICE: Texas State alumnus Brian Olson has his ID checked at the door of Nephew’s. The North Guadalupe Street bar recently changed its age requirements for entry from 18 to 21 in an effort to curb problems with underage drinking.
end of the year. The city will also determine if the lane reduction will allow emergency and fire equipment sufficient access. Mendoza said the city will take all concerns into consideration before a decision is made. “The main goal is to increase safety for pedestrians and add additional parking to encourage people to shop and dine downtown,” Mendoza said. Kindell Bruington, sociology senior, lives off campus and often studies in a coffee shop downtown. Bruington said both the traffic to arrive down-
Two-day Forecast
See DISASTER, page 4
Nephew’s changes age requirements following state investigations
City looking to pave way for new downtown parking spaces By Eloise Martin The University Star
mold. Everyone knows the story of Katrina. I don’t want to remind Texas State students about the horrible things that happened last year. I certainly don’t want to pass judgment on the reconstruction process. I want to tell you what is happening there right now. I went to New Orleans with Susan Weill, School of Journalism assistant professor, her son Tao and The University Star senior reporter Ashley Richards. Weill arranged for us to stay with Liz Gordon, her friend from college and Gordon’s husband, Bill. The Gordons live in Metairie, just outside of the city limits. Their neighborhood suffered only wind damage, and very little of that. They consider themselves lucky because they both kept their jobs at Louisiana State University. Like almost every other school in New Orleans, LSU had to furlough a large portion of its staff. The Gordons’ house suffered no damage. “We rent, and if we’d been flooded, we’d have been out of here,” Liz Gordon said. That seemed to be the sentiment most residents of New Orleans had after Katrina. Immediately after arriving in Metairie on
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