TUESDAY
JANUARY 19, 2016 VOLUME 105 ISSUE 34
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CAMPUS
COMMUNITY
Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration brings diversity By Denise Cervantes ASSISTANT LIFESTYLE EDITOR @cervantesdenise
The University Police Department is preparing for campus carry, which goes into effect on Aug. 1.
While local business owners take their stances on whether or not to allow open carry on their properties, university officials are preparing for Senate Bill 11 to go into effect next fall. SB 11, better known as the campus carry bill, will make it legal for licensed individuals to carry their firearms on campus. The University Police De-
The 31st Annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration Celebration will be held by the Office of Student Diversity and Inclusion this Wednesday. Attendees will meet in front of Old Main at 6:15 p.m. in order to recreate one of King’s famous protest marches. The march will move to the LBJ Student Center Ballroom at 7 p.m., where attendees will have the opportunity to participate in a dinner theater-like event, consisting of an activismthemed program. Jonnie Wilson, SDI assistant director, said the commemoration will highlight diversity by celebrating activists who may not be as well known as others. The dinner theater program will consist of a series of monologues performed by students portraying activists. The monologues will highlight the accomplishments made in their lifetime and also honor their lives, Wilson said. Jerrilyn Roberson, recreational administration sophomore and member of the program committee, said attendees could find themselves sitting next to an activist during the dinner. “There really isn’t a stage,” Roberson said. “They could be sitting right next to you or someone else and they could just start their monologue.” Students on the program committee are assigned activists to research and have
See OPEN CARRY, Page 2
See MLK, Page 2
MADISON MORRISS STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
City, campus prepares for open carry By Madison Morriss NEWS REPORTER
@themorrisscode
Although the New Year rang in the allowance of open carry, some local business owners have expressed that firearms are banned from their premises despite the law. Adam Lilley, the owner and operator of Tantra Coffee House, has made the decision to not allow firearms
on the premises of the popular student hub. “We sell alcohol, and part of the agreement with Texas Alcohol and Beverage Commission has to do with not allowing firearms on premises,” Lilley said. The TABC website states that if alcohol sales constitute less than half of gross receipts, the business must display a sign that reads: "It is unlawful to carry a weapon on the premises unless the
person is licensed to carry the weapon under the concealed handgun law.” “We aren’t personally against the law, we just want to be able to prevent problems down the line,” Lilley said. “We aren’t against the law, it’s just the matter of being smart.” Other local businesses such as Root Cellar Café and Zelicks Icehouse aren’t allowing firearms on their premises either.
“We respect the law, but we don’t feel comfortable for our customers.” said John Allen, Root Cellar Café manager. “We believe that they don’t need to come in with their firearms as far as we’re concerned.” CVS Pharmacy released a statement that those who visit the pharmaceutical store will be allowed to carry a firearm only if they have a concealed handgun license badge.
CRIME
Local officers encourage residents to be aware of burglaries trend By Madison Morriss NEWS REPORTER
@themorrisscode
Student apartment complexes have been the targets of burglary since late last October and local law enforcement officials are warning residents to be aware. From Oct. 30. to Nov. 9, 15 burglaries occurred at The Cottages at Hillside Ranch, Capstone Cottages and other complexes on Telluride Street and River Ridge Parkway. Additionally, a similar incident occurred Dec. 6 at The Retreat, where a burglary went wrong and ended with the murder of Justin Gage, a Texas State student. There are still no leads in determining who shot and killed Gage, said Kelly Earnest, commander of Criminal Investigations at the San Marcos Police Department. Officers with SMPD have made arrests in some of the cases tied to the burglaries in student communities, but not all of them.
SMPD is still looking for three dark-skinned black males, 5’8” to 5’10”, who are suspects in Gage’s murder. All of the subjects were wearing ski masks at the time of the altercation. “We’re leaning on the media and the community in general to give us information about this,” Earnest said. Management at The Retreat declined to comment on the burglaries and the murder. However, management sent an email to residents at The Retreat on Dec. 7 notifying residents that in response to the incident, courtesy patrol would be increased and that residents who felt unsafe could request an escort by a patrol officer. Earnest said recent burglaries at student apartment complexes could have led to a trend of similar crimes throughout the city. “The burglaries are centralized in student housing areas because students have things that burglars want to
have, such as electronics of high value,” Earnest said. “(Students) normally don’t lock their doors because they feel safe in their own environment.” Earnest said that theft crimes have spiked not only in student apartment complexes, but in the city as a whole. This is primarily because the criminals are going after common items. “Generally people will leave their things unlocked. Maybe their roommate’s coming home late, nobody has a key—whatever the case is, people are leaving their doors insecure,” Earnest said. “This allows burglars to come in and steal things.” Items have been stolen from people’s cars recently, simply because owners do not lock them, she said. “People are leaving their cars unlocked or the person might see a purse or an iPad laying on the seat, and it doesn’t take much to break the window or get into the vehicle,” Earnest said.
ASHLEY GALVAN STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
“Basically think of your car as a glass display case. So, if you can see it, someone can steal it.” Earnest said residents should put their valuables in their trunk or out of the
sight of those in passing. “Typically in San Marcos, you see students leaving for the break, which leads to increases in the burglary rate in January whenever students return,” Earnest said. “We do
service patrols in residencies, but calls for service have gone up. If an officer is on a call for service, they’re not able to do patrols.”
CONSTRUCTION
Anticipated highway to start construction this summer By Lesly De Leon SENIOR NEWS REPORTER
@leslyd28
Drivers commuting from Hays County to Austin will be able to enjoy a shorter trip due to the construction of a new highway. Construction on the highway that will reduce commutes to only 9-17 minutes set to begin this summer. In December 2015, the Texas Transpiration Commission approved a $60 million loan for the project. The loan, in addition to a $28.9 million grant from the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization, will fund
the construction of the highway connecting FM 1626 in Hays County to Loop 1 in Southwest Austin. The total cost of the project is approximately $100 million. Hays and Travis counties have contributed $20 million. Construction on the highway is expected to begin in the summer and projected to reach completion in two years. Before construction begins, the Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority will release the project and request bids from contractors to get the most competitive pricing. According to the project’s
website, the Texas Department of Transportation’s environmental division signed a Record of Decision in March 2015, allowing the project to proceed into the final design phase. The highway will help relieve traffic in the Central Texas area, especially in the Shady Hollow neighborhood. When the highway is completed, drivers will have access to Loop 1 and be able to avoid congested surface roads through neighborhoods. “For years we’ve had a huge demand of traffic building up, particularly leaving Hays County going through
different parts of Travis County,” said Hays County Commissioner Will Conley, Precinct 3. The traffic accumulates in residential areas of northern Hays County and southern Travis County as drivers commute to Austin for work, Conley said. “The SH 45SW project we believe will provide a safer, more reliable (route) than what people are currently using,” Conley said. The new section of highway will be a toll road to pay off the $60 million loan. Some have concerns about the highway’s environmental impact. TxDOT conducted
an environmental study of the area between Loop 1 and FM 1626, evaluating the highway’s possible impact on the land, vegetation and the water quality. The design of the highway will incorporate ideas to reduce environmental impact, such as aligning roadways to avoid impact to the Edwards Aquifer recharge features and following existing terrain to minimize the amount of earthwork required. The environmental standards that officials have applied to the project are unmatched in Central Texas, Conley said. “We’re applying the high-
est levels of environmental protections and standards in building a roadway that should help mobility and public safety and quality of life particularly for people in southern Travis County and northern Hays County,” Conley said. The highway project is a partnership between Hays County, Travis County, TxDOT and RMA, Conley said. “We’ve put a lot of time, effort and resources into it. It’s been a long time coming so we’ll be very pleased when the project is completed,” Conley said. “We believe it will be an asset and a benefit to our community.”