Vol. XXXX, No. 1 October 2, 2006 Featured Columnist Devin Thomas Zuczek voices his opinion on the new ur 2 - The Loz Penn State University, Delaware County Years of Construction Yield a Better and Safer Entrance to Delco New entrance welcomes students, and SEPTA too. By SHARON ACHILLES Staff writer saal 92@psu.edu Only a few days before began classes began again for the fall, construction on Route 352 ceased. On Labor Day, the new entrance and traffic light opened officially for use. Slow down. Stop. Speed Bump. Repeat. Previous to the beginning of the semester, students entering campus from Route 352 were forced to combat congestion and opposing traffic on their own with much difficulty. Not only was the stop and go exerting, but unsafe for drivers and Septa alike. Donald Peterson, assistant director of business services, thinks that the students, faculty, and staff like the entrance and stoplight a lot better. He's received plenty of good feedback so far. “The entrance is used quite a lot now. It's not as hectic as before," he said. Students have found the new entrance not only a more convenient way to the Commons Building, but quicker and smoother as well. Without speed bumps, it's not as callous on everyone's cars and patience. "It's easier to get in, which is always helpful," Matt Voigt, elementary education said. The construction which started in 2003, will include some new aesthetic additions. By the spring, the entrance- way should have a wall welcoming visitors to the campus and increasing its' visibility to the community. New road signs will be added along Route 352 as well to alert driv- ers, according to Peterson. "It's fantastic for our safety for the faculty, staff, and guests traveling to and from campus." "Once we raise the funds to put up the completed entrance with a sign, it will provide better visibility to those travel- ing along 352." Christopher Coia, assistant director for student affairs said. Since the bus stops right out front of the Athletics Center and cafeteria, student's can grab a bite to eat or shoot some hoops with their friends before heading home. Coia has seen an increase in traffic from those taking Septa in the Commons Buildings since the new stop. Coia is working on finding lounge furniture for the Athletics' entrance way lobby for students waiting for the bus during colder months. In addition, several other projects are in the works around campus. The campus' upkeep of the buildings, landscaping, and sidewalks is a continual effort. As one project anticipates the finishing touches, campus Business Services' has another one in the works, refurbishing the Vairo Building. "It's a long overdue facelift," Peterson said. - The concrete has been restored and a fresh coat of paint made the wall whiter and brighter. The cracks in the side- walk are being filled in and resurfaced so it's safer to walk. The windows were re-caulked to prevent leaks. The wooden beams above the walkway to the library needed repairs too. They were cleaned, steamed and varnished. “All these renovations are to make the library more aes- thetic looking. We receive a lot of feedback from visitors who say our campus is a pretty, nice place to visit. It's really friendly here," he said. Noisy construction has been an aggravation to students studying or taking a tests. "There was a lot of racket for 40 straight minutes, they stopped and started over an over again. It was really annoying," Voigt said. A new 6,500 sq. ft. maintenance garage is another behind-the-scenes project in the works. With a completion due in late Jan. it'll be just in time to aid with snow removal. "It'll be better to get work done that needs to be done. This will benefit the campus by servicing the equipment better and keeping it out of students' way," said Peterson. Improved Parking at Penn State Delco By: ALICE GEORGE Staff writer aegl68@psu.edu It is already several weeks into this semester; at this point, all students who drive to campus should have a brown 4-year parking tag hanging from the mirror of their vehicle. This was not the case last week, however, when Campus Security Officer, Dave Horevay had to issue 225 tickets for students parking without the proper permit. Though there was a grace period of several days, hundreds of students had still not registered their vehi- cles. Last year, Horevay issued an estimated 25-50 parking tickets per week. The most common violation, students parking in faculty/staff or visitor parking spots, were issued. The most annoying violation noted by students was double parked cars in the main lot. The most expensive fines, $25, are for parking in a handicapped parking spot or in a fire zone. All fines collected for vio- lations go to the Student Government Association treas- ury. There have been several changes this year to the park- ing situation at Penn State Delco; primarily, the integra- tion of 4-year parking tags as opposed to the tags of past semesters that expired after only one year. The reason for the new tags? Horevay explained that the associate director of student affairs, Chris Coia, and the finance office decided to cut costs and money by issuing 4-year tags. Too much time was being spent every year re- entering information into the system; too much money was being spent printing new tags every year. Each year, approximately 2,300 permits had to be printed. This year, only 2,000 tags were printed and in the fol- lowing years, there will only have to be approximately 600 new tags printed and issued. The colors of the new tags will still change every year. So each year, there will be four different colored tags in the parking lots. How- ever, Horevay is certain there will be no problems with the new system. Also, there have been no new problems with the new entrance to the parking lot. Most students still use the Yearsley Mill Road entrance to the campus and, in fact, exit the campus that way and choose to take the back roads at the end of the day. Clearly, though, the new entrance has alleviated some of the incoming traffic at the original entrance. Though there are improvements, he stresses the importance of obeying the speed limit and paying atten- tion to new traffic patterns. “Be cautious,” Horevay stat- ed. “Even though there are stop signs at the intersection after the new light, some students do not slow down.” He has noticed that, in fact, students often speed up when entering the parking lot. At the beginning of the semester, there were perma- nent and removable stop signs at the new entrance. Unfortunately, within ten days of classes starting, one of the new portable stop signs was stolen. The cost of the stolen sign was approximately $85. Security now has to remove the stop signs at night and bring them out again in the morning. There are over 800 student and faculty/staff parking spots available in both lots. At the time of the interview, over 1,100 vehicles had been registered for parking. If a student has any questions or concerns regarding parking or security, campus security can be reached at 610-496-2522 or 496 from any campus phone. Five years after 9/11. Where is the U.S. now? INSIDE John Miller reports on Pg. 7 Student/Teacher Profile................. Beat the System.............cccevviieennn. Delco Community Update............... Library Movie Series............oooeninnnns Page 2 | Fireside Music Series ...........cccueeens Page 5 Page 3 People Poll.......cconninniivnissirssinnes Page 6 Page 4 | Club Face-off-Letters to the Editor....Page 6 Page|. SPortS...............cciivrmivscissssssraris .Page 8
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