Coliseum, SC could go long-term Senate
www.dailytrojan.com
November 1, 2006
Vol. CLIX, No. 50
supports Gateway
Undergraduate Student Government says the new project would help with university housing shortages.
By TOREY VAN OOT
Staff Writer
Senators unanimously approved a resolution renewing their support of the University Gateway housing project at Tuesday’s Undergraduate Student Government meeting.
University Gateway, a private housing complex funded by Los Angeles-based developer Urban Partners, LLC., would house about 1,600 students in more than 420 apartments at the intersection of Jefferson Boulevard and Figueroa Street The building would also house a sit-down restaurant, a USC , bookstore and gym.
Although the project has received criticism from some community members, particularly Conquest Student Housing and other private landlords, senators and university officials say the project would alleviate the student-housing shortage in North University Park and begin to bridge the gap between campus and downtown Los Angeles.
“The proximity to the campus is good, and we know that there is demand for student housing right now,” said Jeff Urdahl, director of TrojanHousing. “I’m interested in“ student housing and to the extent that more student housing helps the students, I’m in favor of it”
Gateway is the first step in creating a college-town feel in the neighborhood surrounding campus, giving USC its own version of UCLA’s Westwood or Stanford University’s Palo Alto, Dan Rosenfeld, Urban Partners co-founder, said in an Oct 24 presentation to senators.
Students and administrators agreed improving the surrounding neighborhood would be beneficial for students and the university.
“My sense of it is it’s going to help develop a residential feel for the campus,” Urdahl said.
Residential Sen. Lindsay Plake, who has spoken in favor of the project at public hearings, said Gateway would not only improve the atmosphere around campus, but also create a neighborhood that feels “family oriented.”
“Car dealerships, that’s not family oriented,” she said. “They really want students to support this because it’s basically for the students.”
Residential Sen. Max Slavkin, who wrote the resolution, said Gateway “will definitely improve quality of life at the university,” giving USC “Westwood instead of Del Taco.”
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University would also help maintain, improve facilities in and around the Coliseum.
By WHITNEY JOHNSON
Staff Writer
With the uncertainty of an NFL team in Los Angeles, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Commission might reach a long-term lease with USC that would ensure Trojan football would not have to move in favor of an NFL team, said Todd Dickey, senior vice president of the USC Office of the General Counsel.
As a long-term tenant, USC would provide the Coliseum with assistance in maintaining and improving the facility in aspects ranging from restrooms to scoreboards.
Currently, the commission and USC negotiate a year-to-year lease.
In return, USC would have greater access to the Coliseum.
The commitment would also ensure that the venue has a viable use for years to come' even if Los Angeles does not gain an NFL team.
The commission is unsure of how much longer it is willing to wait for the NFL to make a decision before it moves forward to develop a contract with USC, said Pat Lynch, general manager of the Coliseum Commission.
Whether Los Angeles would ever have another football team has been in question since 1995, after the Rams left for St. Louis and the Raiders left for Oakland.
With an NFL team at the Coliseum, USC might have to find another venue for its home games for at least two years while the Coliseum undergoes construction.
The commission aspires to develop the Coliseum into a more state-
of-the-art venue, so it now has to consider potential investors, Lynch said.
USC has maintained a year-to-year lease with the Coliseum for its six annual home games. The Coliseum currently receives 8 percent of those ticket sales, Dickey said.
It is not yet known in what way the rate will change in the event of a long-term arrangement, but the organizations will negotiate if necessary.
Since the NFL has also expressed interest in the Angel Stadium of Anaheim, there is a possibility that USC could stay put in the Coliseum •even if a team does come to Los Angeles; so far, the league has not indicated which venue it prefers.
If USC cannot use the Coliseum, it will have to relocate to other stadiums and possibly settle for fewer seats or face scheduling conflicts, Dickey said.
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The Los Angeles Rams were the last professional football team to play in the Coliseum.
Aside from the Coliseum, the NFL is also looking at Angel Stadium in Anaheim as a possible site for a pro team.
Trojan future. With the Coliseum Commission still unsure of how much longer it will wait for the NFL to make a decision on whether to bring a team back to Los Angeles, USC and the commission might establish a long-term contract.
Students angry over new downtown classrooms
Social work grad students say they feel segregated from Trojan Family.
By ELIZABETH GELI
Contributing Writer
The School of Social Work's last-minute move of some of its classes to the Downtown City Center has angered the affected students and made them feel disconnected from the University Park Campus.
“I signed up on accident because I had no idea what DWT was when I signed up for classes,” said Paulina Arango, a first-year graduate student studying social work. "I thought it was just another building code on campus, and when I got here they told me I was a 'downtown stu-
dent’”
The change in facilities affects some classes for first-year students on Tuesdays, second-year students in the mental-health concentration on Thursdays and part-time students on Saturdays.
“We had insufficient adequate classrooms for graduate professional education on the University Park Campus,” wrote Social Work Dean Marilyn Flynn in an open letter to students, e-mailed Sept. 22.
After a deal for a location about one mile away from the main campus fell through in February 2006, USC entered into a lease for space in the downtown AT&T Center in April. Most students said they did not know about the change until they arrived at USC in the fall.
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Tuscany expected to open first-floor shops next week
Construction delays keep stores from opening as well as pool, spa and gym.
By LAURA DAVIS
Staff Writer
Long-awaited shops on the first floor of Tuscany, Conquest Student Housing's newest apartment building, should open next week, said Conquest project manager Casey Smith.
Smith said The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf and Robeks, two of the shops on Tuscany’s first floor, are almost ready to open and should by next week.
Cold Stone Creamery and Quiznos, also located on the first floor, should open by mid-November, he said.
Greg Ferrell, an area developer for Cold Stone Creamery in Southern
California, said he hopes the Cold Stone on the first floor of Tuscany will open in about three weeks.
“We know once we do open, it will be one of our top stores, so we're OK with waiting,” he said.
Because of construction delays, residents moved in later than expected in August and are still waiting — three months after the intended completion date — to use all of the building’s facilities, including a pool, spa and gym.
Smith said a variety of factors contributed to the delays in construction.
“Usually when construction is delayed, there’s a lot of reasons,” he said.
Two major factors, Smith said, were the current construction market and heavy rains last winter.
Paul Goldman, vice president of
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