October 16 2013

Page 1

VOLUME 103, ISSUE 24

www.UniversityStar.com

WEDNESDAY

OCTOBER 16, 2013

Defending the First Amendment since 1911

VIDEO | UniversityStar.com

SPORTS | Page 7

Classical Recital: Texas State graduate students performed classical guitar solos Monday as part of the Student Recital Series.

Georgia State Preview: The Bobcats’ defense will be challenged Saturday when the team faces Georgia State’s offense and wide receiver Albert Wilson.

CITY COUNCIL

Planning and Zoning vice chair retains position despite alleged ethics violations By James Carniero

Assistant News Editor

San Marcos City Council members voted 5–2 to keep Carter Morris on the Planning and Zoning Commission Tuesday evening after several alleged ethics violations were brought against him. Emails sent from Morris to fellow Planning and Zoning commissioners were submitted as evidence in his ethics hearing. Morris, the commission’s vice chair, sent the emails while the board members were deciding whether to approve the construction of an apart-

Carter Morris

ment complex he was representing as a real estate agent at the time. This violates the San Marcos Ethics Code, according to City Attorney Michael Cosentino.

See MORRIS, Page 3

CONSTRUCTION

CITY COUNCIL

Smoking ordinance amended to include e-cigarettes After the San Marcos city councilmembers voted Oct. 2 to pass an amendment to the new Clear Air Ordinance, the use of e-cigarettes in public places will be banned beginning in June. As of June 1, 2014, smoking or “vaping” inside any bar, lounge or restaurant will not be permitted, according to the ordinance. The ordinance defines smoking as “inhaling, exhaling, burning or carrying any lighted or heated cigar, cigarette, pipe, tobacco, weed, plant, or other combustible substance in any manner or in any form.” Smoking includes the use of an e-cigarette, which by definition under the ordinance “creates a vapor in any manner or in any form.” City staff are looking into questions that have been raised about “vaping” and “vape shops,” according to Councilwoman Kim Porterfield, Place 1. “I anticipate there will be future discussion and possibly an amendment to allow for vape shops to operate, similar to the exemption on smoking shops,” Porterfield said. Retail tobacco stores are cur-

Danielle Charles | Staff Photographer The remodeling of the Comal Building is budgeted at $13.85 million and is scheduled to be complete by June 2014.

Reynaldo Leaños | Photo Illustration rently exempted from the portion of the ordinance that prohibits smoking in public places, according to the ordinance. No such exception is yet defined for “vape shops.” Enforcement of the ordinance ranges from routine health inspections by city employees to reports of violations to the director of the Environmental Health Division of the Community Services Department. “No Smoking” signs will be required in all public places where smoking is prohibited, according to the ordinance. “I don’t see why e-cigarettes needed to be included,” said Robert Rahm, a local regular “vape shop” customer. “You can’t smell it, and it’s not harmful to the people around you.”

—Report compiled by Michelle Balagia, news reporter

Campus building renovations continue Philosophy, computer science departments to have new home in Comal Building By Autumn Bernhard News Reporter

T

he gutted remains of the Psychology Building are in the process of being renovated to open by June 2014 with a new look, name and departments. Construction on the structure, which will now take on the moniker of the Comal Building, began in May 2012, according to Juan Guerra, associate vice president of Facilities. The computer science and philosophy departments will occupy the building by August 2014, and classes will be held there next fall, he said. The remodeling project is budgeted to total $13.85 million. “The building was well past a remodel due to its age,” Guerra said. “We upgraded the mechanical appliances, gave it a new AC and made it code compliant in electrical appliances. It will also be re-roofed and have easier stair access. We also gave it new IT sys-

tems.” According to Guerra, nothing was added onto the building, but officials have reconfigured the building’s layout to make the facilities more evenly distributed. The classrooms will be able to hold 40 people, and conference rooms will have space for a meeting table and 15 people, he said. The philosophy department will occupy the first floor of the building, and the computer science department will be located on the third floor, said Cheryl Morriss, computer science administrative assistant. The two departments will share the second floor, Morriss said. The psychology department was relocated to the Undergraduate Academic Center after its construction and will remain there to accommodate future growth within the department, Guerra said. Currently, the computer science department is located in the Nueces Building with classrooms held in the Math and Computer Science Building, and the philosophy department is located in Derrick Hall, Guerra said. The philosophy department was located in the former Psychology Building before remodeling began and has been housed in Derrick since the sum-

mer 2012. Department officials are anticipating the move to the Comal Building, said Vincent Luizzi, philosophy department chair. “We will have offices and some classrooms in the building,” Luizzi said. “The main addition for the department is going to be a brand new dialogue room. Moving into to Comal Building will give us a central location again, and The Quad houses many of the liberal arts buildings, so we will feel at home.” The department of computer science has been located in the Nueces Building since 2002, Morriss said. When renovations are complete, faculty and department offices and some labs will move into the Comal Building, but the classes will remain in Derrick, Morriss said. Department officials hope to gain some room to grow with added space in the new building, said Hongchi Shi, computer science department chair. The new labs are designed to be larger to accommodate more research projects fueled by an increase in funding, Shi said. “Our main concern is that the renovations will not be done on time,” Shi said.

CONSTRUCTION

Study conducted to expand seating in Strahan Coliseum By Rebecca Banks News Reporter

A Dallas-based architecture group will complete a study on Strahan Coliseum by the end of the month to determine whether the facility can be expanded to better accomodate crowds for commencement ceremonies. Juan Guerra, associate vice president of Facilities, said the Moody-Nolan architecture firm is conducting an expansion feasibility study to provide cost efficient plans for the construction of more seats in the arena. During the study, firm officials are reconfiguring the current seating arrangement and evaluating possible expansions for the coliseum, Guerra said. Guerra said the study will be completed by the end of this month, and Moody-Nolan will provide proposed options for construction at the coliseum. Facilities will take a few weeks to review the proposed options and then submit one for a final report to Provost Eugene Bourgeois and President Denise Trauth for approval.

Guerra said he estimates a final report including details of the selected expansion plan to be put out at the end of November. The Texas State University System Board of Regents will cast votes for final approval during their May 2014 meeting, he said. Strahan Coliseum currently seats 7,500 people. The current occupancy limit is adequate for sporting events such as basketball and volleyball games because the crowds are not as large as those during graduation ceremonies, Guerra said. “So when you’re watching a basketball game you know that’s pretty comfortable, but when you’re dealing with commencement and you’ve got 9,000 to 10,000 people coming to see their sons and daughters graduate, we can’t get everyone into the coliseum,” Guerra said. According to Kristin McDaniel, commencement coordinator for the Office of Curriculum Services, there were 3,094 graduates in spring 2012, 2,302 graduates in fall 2012 and in 1,461 graduates in summer 2012. In spring 2013, the

number of graduates increased to 3,403 and currently 2,849 candidates have applied for graduation for this fall, McDaniel said. McDaniel said the university estimates an average of 10 individuals will attend the commencement ceremony for each graduation candidate. Oftentimes the candidates will bring more or less than the estimated amount of guests, which varies between the different commencement ceremonies, McDaniel said. According to Debbie Thorne, associate vice president of Academic Affairs, the university established an “overflow room” in Jowers Center’s Gym 102 in May because there was not enough seating in the arena for last spring’s commencement ceremonies. Thorne said the gym can seat 800 to 1,000 people, and they will be able to watch the live-streamed ceremony on a large screen. “What is really interesting about the overflow rooms is no one was upset,” Thorne said. “When we did the singing of the national anthem, people actually stood up even though they were in the overflow

Kathryn Parker | Staff Photographer Studies are being conducted to determine options to expand Strahan Coliseum for graduation ceremonies. room.” Thorne estimates some ceremoThorne said the university has nies this December will exceed a high graduation rate, and it is the maximum occupancy, so an expected to increase due to the “overflow room” will most likely continuing increase of enrollment. be needed. As a result, more seating will need Thorne said since the university to be available at some point, she first discussed providing an addisaid. tional commencement ceremony, “We realize that our main con- there has been an effort to expand straint is the coliseum, and we Strahan Coliseum to allow more obviously don’t have anywhere guests to attend the ceremony. else on campus or anywhere else Thorne said the university does in San Marcos that can seat more not want to limit attendees by than 7,500 people or so,” Thorne implementing a ticket system as said. other universities have done. Thorne said the university an“As an institution, we really valnounced there will be a seventh ue friends and family being a part commencement ceremony in May of graduation, so we really don’t 2014 as opposed to the six cer- like the idea of turning people emonies typically held in the past. away at the door,” Thorne said.


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.
October 16 2013 by The University Star - Issuu