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Marcu 23, 2005

Debate Over Student Centre Intensifies

By KATHLEEN DE VERE
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY BRYNA CASEY
News EDITOR AND STAFF WRITER

With the referendum for the
Northern University Student Centre
(NUSC) only a week away, debate is
heating up over whether UNBC stu-
dents will be willing to pay the extra
$50 a semester to finance its.construc-
tion.

The referendum, scheduled for
March 30 and March 31, will ask-stu-
dents if they are “in favour of increas-
ing the Building Fee charged to all
Undergraduate Students from $15/
semester to $50/semester to finance
the construction of your Northern
University Student Centre?” The
question also includes an addition that
the construction of the NUSC will
start no later than May 2006.

While most students agree that a
student union building is a necessity
for UNBC’s expanding campus, some
are still undecided if the increased
cost, an extra $35 a semester, can be
justified for the building.

“Students should vote yes bécause
for $12.50 a month they will be pro-
vided services such as: [a] used book-
store, informal lounges, clubs offices,
events space, pub, travel office, study
lounges, food court, gaming room and
more. The future building will provide
a facility that will be student run and
operated; [and] provide a unique envi-
ronment distinct from academic life,
which fulfills the needs ‘and interests of
our students,” said NUGSS President,
Jeremy Belyea.

Belyea also cautioned that, “if stu-
dents don’t vote yes for this fee
increase, the project will be at a stand-
still and it’s hard to say when this
building will get built.”

In addition to concerns over cost,
some students have also questioned the
conceptual drawings for the NUSC,
and‘are concerned that the already
cramped student services such as

CFUR and PIRG will not be getting a
more significant allotment of space in
the new building.

_ “Considering [that] we have not yet
finalized any of the space allocations, I
can’t Imagine anyone being upset this
early in the game,” said Belyea. “The
designs presented are merely concept
drawings and nothing more, I wanted
to be able to present a better picture of
what the students would be looking at
in terms of spacing and design, lead-
ing up to the referendum,” explained
Belyea.

“There is also a clear disclaimer in
our brochures saying that these are just
concepts, and subject to change. As a
side note, for the many people that are
happy with the designs, you can take
extra pride in the fact that they were
done by a UNBC student, Jaime
Sanchez, a fourth year planning stu-
dent,” added Belyea.

Most of the student services on
campus are taking a ‘wait and see’
approach to the new building, prefer-
ring to defer opinions.on the building
until it is closer to completion.

“We asked for enough space for two

‘studiog some office ‘space and a

library, but I can’t complain or be
happy about our space allotment
because we don’t know if it will be
anything like the conceptual draw-
ings,” said Christopher Earl, Manager
of CFUR Radio, when asked about
space allocation in the NUSC. “All we
can get out of the ¢onceptual plan is
that the Women’s Centre gets a little
slice, PGPIRG gets a little slice, and we
get a bit bigger one, but it is all yet to
be seen,” said Earl.

According to figures provided by
NUGSS, the building will cost approx-
imately $3,300 per square metre to
build, meaning the building, which is
scheduled to be comparable in size to
the new medical building, will cost
approximately $11.9 million.

The current NUGSS building fund

GRAPHIC PROVIDED

An artist’s rendition of how the Northern University Student Centre will look once it is built. Sudents
will be voting on whether they want to pay $50 a semester to finance its construction next week.

stands at more than $1 million, mean-
ing that with the university’s pledge of
$2.3 million, NUGSS will have to take
on a mortgage for $8.3 million dollars.
With the fees raised from $15 to $50
per ‘semester, NUGSS will see
$316,700 from student levies to
finance the construction of the
NUSC.

At 5.5 percent interest, NUGSS will
be paying more than $681,000 per
year in mortgage payments, so the
building will have to generate more
than $360,000 per year in revenues to
maintain mortgage payments.

According to NUGSS, the balance
of the revenue needed will come from
rent and profits from the proposed
pub, food court, arcade, and commer-
cial activities, as well as grants, dona-
tions and sponsorships.

“The estimated costs are...high,”

said Belyea. “ We may be able to build
for less which [we are] looking into
right now. [The] bottom line is, if the
students don’t support this project then
we shouldn’t build the building. It has
to start with the fee increase and then
work from there,” he explained.
When asked how he felt about stu-
dents supporting the NUSC through
both a direct levy, as well as indirectly
by paying for services in the NUSC,
Belyea said: “Students already pay for
food services and arcade games, [and]
beer in the Wintergarden. Now they
will be paying the same or less for a
better service in those areas. Wouldn’t
they rather pay for those services in
their own building than give it to the
existing monopoly contracts that are
on campus right now? The services
will be employing students as well; it is
more a benefit to the students rather

than looking at it like the students are
paying the entire cost of the building.
Revenue will be generated from staff
and faculty using the services as well.”

When asked if ‘he was worried
about other student union run pubs
and restaurants, such as the Vertigo
Lounge at the University of Victoria,
closing down due to consistent losses,
Belyea responded by stating that
NUGSS had looked into the possibili-
ty, and is trying to make sure the ser-
vices provided in the NUSC are as
diverse as possible to avoid a similar
situation.

If the referendum for the NUSC
passes, NUGSS has werked out an
agreement with the University where
they will not own the building, but will
manage it, and the university will pro-
vide maintenance and janitorial ser-
vices for the NUSC free of charge.

Nude Photo Causes Controversy at University of Calgary

- By COSANNA PRESTON
CUP ALBERTA AND NORTHERN BUREAU
CHIEF

EDMONTON (CUP) -- Two edi-
tors of a student newspaper at the
University of Calgary were suspended
without pay March 14, after publish-
ing the nude photograph of a stripper
earlier in the month.

The picture, which was taken at
their student union's Sexual Health
Awareness Show, depicted full-frontal
nudity, with a woman wearing a chain-
mail bikini. The accompanying article
focused on the show's dancers parad-
ing through the campus food court in
overly revealing attire.

The public outcry that erupted
from its publishing ranged from the
student union saying the photo was in
"poor taste," to a university vice-presi-
dent calling it "gratuitous, graphic and
entirely unacceptable." Additionally,
the photographed exotic dancer, who
goes by the stage name Honey
Houston and happens to be a student
at the university, has demanded the

Gauntlet be shut down.

The paper's board of directors sus-
pended editor-in-chief Ben Li and
news editor Dale Miller, citing their
failure to "meaningfully address the
controversy of [the] event" in the 230-
word article that accompanied the
photo, and for not responding to the
public outcry in a timely fashion.

Jeff Kubik, one of two staff repre-
sentatives on the board, stressed the
action taken was not a result of public
pressure but rather a statement to the
Gauntlet's staff about the responsibili-
ty that accompanies freedom of
expression.

"The article that ran with (the
photo) is inappropriate. It does not
provide the context that it required. . .
. The article allowed the picture to
speak for it, which it should never have
done,” said Kubik.

"This is not a response to external
pressure. We will not apologize for the
photograph. This is a question of
holding ourselves accountable to the
standards that we believe we can reach

as a paper."

But Li argued the photo would not
have run had the article not been suf-
ficient

"We decided to run it knowing that
there would be some controversy com-
ing out of it . . » but it was not our
intent to offend. It was our intent to
show what happened in the event," he
said, expressing shock and disdain
over the suspension, which he said was
completely unexpected.

‘This defence prompted Greg
Clayton, a vice-president of the stu-
dent union and its representative on
the Gauntlet board of directors, to
request an emergency meeting of the
board.

"I have an issue saying that [the
photo] accurately reported the event.
There were over 400 pictures taken at
the event and this was the one that
showed stuff like this," said Clayton.

"They went out of their way to
choose this picture because it was the
only one they had like this and I hon-
éstly think [Miller] is trying to offload

this back on to the SU," he added,
referring to a statement published by
Miller, which argued he covered the
event in the same way it was conduct-
ed.

The back and forth continued as Li
defended the contextualization of the
photo through the article. He argued
the photo provided a necessary image
for readers who were trying to under-
stand what the dancers were wearing
when they strolled through the food
court.

"I don't think the Gauntlet did any-
thing illegal but I certairily don't think
it was in the best interests of students
or in the paper. I think they could have
gotten their point across in a less offen-
sive manner."

According to the Gauntlet's bylaws,
the board is required to review the edi-
tors' suspensions one week after the
initial decision. Li intends to appeal
the decision at that time.

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