11 15 2012 Section A

Page 1

VOLUME 102, ISSUE 37

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NOVEMBER 15, 2012

SECTION A

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BUILDING DEBT

of a 3-part serie s Part 3

Traffic to worsen during Loop 82 construction

Debt within the Texas State University System

By Nicole Barrios News Reporter While San Marcos residents will get the overpass they wanted when Loop 82 construction begins in 2013, the traffic they want to avoid will increase until the project’s completion. Councilwoman Kim Porterfield, Place 1, said residents indicated San Marcos has needed an overpass in addition to the one on Wonder World Drive for years. She said residents have voiced that an overpass would increase public safety and ease traffic. The Loop 82 overpass will hopefully fulfill those needs in the long run, but its construction may be an inconvenience in the meantime, she said. At least one lane will be open on each side of Aquarena Springs Drive throughout the project, Porterfield said. She said there are currently two lanes open in each direction, and residents should expect some delays. She said the first phase, beginning in 2013, will not cause much disruption for residents. “I don’t think until phase two, when they actually start construction of the overpass, that it will really negatively impact people traveling on that road,” Porterfield said. “There are a lot of orange cones in San Marcos right now, and when the project starts, there’s going to be even more. But once we get through it, I think it’ll help (the city).” Juan Miguel Arredondo is a city neighborhood commission representative for sector 2 and a public administration sophomore. He said as a lifelong resident of San Marcos, it is exciting to see the Loop 82 project move forward. Arredondo said as a resident and student, he personally knows the traffic congestion faced on Aquarena Springs Drive is “horrible.” Arredondo said a complaint he hears consistently from residents is students cause traffic in the neighborhoods surrounding the university. He said many neighborhoods experience traffic at peak hours of the day such as 4 p.m., 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. “What we as a commission look forward to are the benefits related to traffic when Loop 82 is complete,” Arredondo said. Porterfield said San Marcos has many at-grade railroad crossings with dozens of trains coming through the city every day. She said this causes an inconvenience for residents and prevents emergency vehicles from getting where they need to be. Arredondo said the traffic congestion for residents who live off Sessom and University drives as far as the downtown area will hopefully lessen. He said because more students and residents will be driving on Loop 82, there will no longer be a risk of being stopped by a train. Naomi Narvaiz, president of the Council of Neighborhood Associations, said the group supports the Loop 82 overpass project and believes it will be good for the community. Narvaiz and Porterfield said the project may cause slight inconveniences during its construction, but people will be pleased once it is complete. “(The Loop 82 overpass) will affect many residents very positively in the end,” Porterfield said. “But the two years that it’s going to take to construct that overpass are going to be difficult for everyone.”

Lamar University — $127,131,288

Lamar Institute of Technology — $4,000,295

Sam Houston State University — $151,846,689

Lamar State College Orange — $2,868,837

Sul Ross State University — $36,601,886

Lamar State College Port Arthur — $7,159,982

Texas State University-San Marcos — $411,595,180

Enrollment, construction raise university debt By Caitlin Clark News Editor Outstanding debt at the Texas State University System is increasing with the size of its institutions, a state-wide trend, according to a recent report released by the Texas comptroller. Texas’ public four-year colleges and universities had $12.5 billion in outstanding debt at the end of 2011, according to “Your Money and Education Debt,” a report by Susan Combs, Texas comptroller of public accounts. The Texas State University System has $777.7 million in outstanding debt,

$411.6 million of which is from Texas State alone. Bill Nance, vice president of Finance and Support Services, said Texas State is able to support these levels of debt through the use of different bonds. According to the report, state colleges and universities use bond debt primarily to fund facility construction and renovation projects. Non-tuition revenue bond debt is the most common and fastest-growing form of higher education deficit. Nance said non-tuition revenue bonds are usually backed by different construction projects in Texas State’s case. Construction of the North Campus

Housing Complex, for example, was financed through non-tuition revenue bonds, Nance said. This is not a drain on general university resources because revenue from the room rates students pay for their residence halls will finance the housing complex’s construction. The expansion of the football stadium was additionally financed through nontuition revenue bonds. The cost will be repaid through sports revenue, ticket sales, gifts and the student athletic fee, Nance said. Tuition revenue bonds are additional-

READ DEBT, PAGE 3

Sediment poses danger to Texas wild rice By Adrian Omar Ramirez News Reporter Runoff sediment created from nearby construction projects could threaten Taylor Leal’s favorite part of the San Marcos River: its clarity. Leal, education senior, said she has been a regular at Sewell Park since her freshman year at Texas State. She said the San Marcos River’s quality is one of the reasons so many people flock to Sewell Park to escape the Texas heat. “People like our river because it’s so clear,” Leal said. “Nobody would want to get in a dirty river.”

Dianne Wassenich, program director for San Marcos River Foundation, said the university and the rest of the town are located around the headwaters of the river. Wassenich said runoff from construction causes sediment to form small “peninsulas” in the San Marcos River. The runoff buries the endangered Texas wild rice native to the area and can cause the riverbed, which typically feels gravelly, to feel muddy, Wassenich said. Wassenich said most of the runoff created on the Texas State campus goes into Sessom Creek. This is problematic because the creek flows into the head of the river. The Department of Facilities Planning, Design and Construction is looking into

projects to prevent storm water runoff from entering the river. The Environmental Protection Agency additionally has a Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System that attempts to keep the river clean, Wassenich said. However, in some cases it is difficult to keep runoff from entering the river when it rains, said Michael Petty, director of Facilities, Planning, Design and Construction. He said a recent eight-inch downpour managed to overrun the university’s storm water pollution prevention devices. Petty said he had contacted University of Texas staff members who oversee storm wa-

READ RIVER, PAGE 3

Student charged with 14 counts of manufacturing fake IDs By Taylor Tompkins Assistant News Editor

Photo courtesy of the City of San Marcos

A student was arrested during a Sigma Chi fraternity meeting Tuesday for the manufacturing of fake IDs. The San Marcos Police Department, along with the University Police Department, arrested 20-yearold Jake Waldrep shortly after 7 p.m. Nov. 13. Police also seized

Waldrep’s property after executing a search warrant, according to SMPD. Waldrep, engineering technology sophomore, was charged for manufacturing 14 fake IDs, each being a third-degree felony charge of manufacturing a counterfeit instrument. Each of the 14 counts are punishable with anywhere from two to 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. “We did recover 14 (IDs) that

he had manufactured,” said SMPD Cmdr. Kelly Earnest. “We seized a computer and some documents, so I’m sure that number will go up.” Kelly said the investigation is ongoing. Waldrep was released from the Hays County Law Enforcement Center on a $10,000 bond. The investigation began when a doorman of a bar told SMPD Officer Tiffany Williams about an indi-

vidual attempting to use a counterfeit temporary Texas driver’s license to get into establishments on The Square. Williams located the individual that night and later identified Waldrep as the suspected source of the fake IDs after a month-long investigation. Numerous individuals are suspected of using fraudulent temporary Texas driver’s licenses police believe Waldrep had manufactured.


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