NEWS ON CAMPUS Changes to State 0 St. commuter lot effective tomorrow Beginning tomorrow, two changes to facilitate traffic flow near the State Street Commuter Lot, which is near the University's tennis center, will be enacted. The north driveway will now be the entrance and the south driveway will be the exit. Also, buses will board passengers at the lot's north- east corner. Buses will unload in a space adjacent to the handicapped parking area, which is between the two driveways. Dance company to perform at Power Center The Power Center for the Perform- ing Arts will host the Jose Limon Dance Company tonight at 8 p.m. Adult tickets run from $18 to $40 and are available for purchase through the University Musical Society. Panel to discuss public school achievement gap An interdisciplinary faculty panel will discuss the achievement gap between the poor and the rich in public education in the Koessler Room of the Michigan League at 6 p.m. today. The event is part of the Martin Luther King Jr. symposium. CRIME NOTES Thief ransacks vending machine At about 12:59 p.m. Wednesday, a caller in South Quad reported that a thief had broken into one of the vending machines on the west side of the ground floor and taken all its contents, the Department of Public Safety reported. A possible suspect was seen in the area. Money stolen from wallet at hospital A wallet was stolen at the University * Hospital at about 5:35 p.m. Wednesday according to DPS. The wallet was recov- ered near the main entrance, but $35 was missing. There are currently no suspects. * Hospital workers get in fight DPS responded to a report that two University hospital staff members had an altercation at about 11:30 p.m Wednesday, according to DPS records. Trespasser refuses to leave hospital A subject known for trespassing at the University Hospital was arrested 11:36 p.m. Wednesday night for refusing to leave the premises, DPS said. The subject was later released from custody. THIS DAY In Daily History Police question * subject about flashing at UGLi Jan. 13, 1981 - Several days after a female student told police a man had exposed himself to her at the Undegradu- ate Library, police have taken a man into custody for questioning. The man allegedly approached the female student claiming to be a security officer investigating reports of a prowler at the West Engineering Building. He then asked her to look out the third-story window while he tried to capture the fic- titious prowler. The student claims the suspect then went outside and undressed in front of the window. The Michigan Daily - Friday, January 13, 2006 - 3 Borders stock up despte dictions Ann Arbor-based company expected flat sales, but posted higher earnings in fourth quarter CHICAGO (AP) - Borders Group Inc. stock rose yesterday after the Michigan-based book retailer announced better-than-expected sales fig- ures for its superstores in the United States, and a report indicated that buyout firms could be set to put in a bid for the company. Shares of Borders rose $2.29, or 10 percent, to close at $24.70 Thursday on the New York Stock Exchange. After the close of trading Wednesday, the Ann Arbor company said sales at superstores open more than one year rose 2.2 percent in the fiscal fourth quarter, which ended Jan. 28. The retailer had forecast sales would be flat to slightly lower at the stores. It attributed the increase to strong book sales. It also sells CDs and DVDs. A report by the Financial Times said a num- ber of large private-equity firms are considering a bid for Borders. The article said the decision to go ahead by the buyout firms would hinge on perfor- mance during the just-completed holiday period. The buyout firms are reportedly poised to pay more than $25 a share, putting the value of the deal at about $2 billion, the FT reported. Officials at Borders weren't immediately available to com- ment on the report. * In announcing the sales data, Borders also raised the lower end of its earnings outlook for its fourth quarter. The company now expects to earn between $1.70 and $1.80 a share for the period, up from previous view of $1.60 to $1.80 a share. Analysts were expecting earnings of $1.70 a share, according to Thomson Financial. Dereck Leckow, analyst at Barrington Research, said Borders' stock was getting a boost Thursday because of the buyout speculation and the surprising- ly strong same-store sales so far in its fourth quarter. The strong book sales were a good sign because that is one area on which Borders has focused, he said. The book retailer's stock has been under pres- sure because the company is in an investment period, spending money on renovating its stores, Leckow said. That work has disrupted sales. Bor- ders ended its renovation work for the current year during the third quarter so that work wouldn't affect sales during the important fourth quarter, which includes the holiday selling season. Man poisons three with handshakes Suspect rubbed unknown substance on hands during court hearing, FBI investigating LANSING (AP) - A man has been jailed on assault charges after a prosecutor, police officer and courtroom bailiff became seri- ously ill after shaking hands with him. During a Dec. 21 court appearance on a traffic charge, John Ridgeway pulled out a vial of an unknown liquid, rubbed his hands with the contents and insisted on shaking hands with the three people, authorities said. All of them got sick within an hour, suffer- ing from nausea, headaches, numbness and tingling that lasted about a day. Two sought treatment at a hospital. The FBI was running tests on the substance to identify it. Ridgeway, 41, told the Associated Press in a telephone interview from jail yesterday that the substance was olive oil. He ques- tioned whether the three officials were sick at all, and charged that the allegations were fabricated. Land sale in peninsula may hurt wildlife Environmentalists worry about sensitive wildlife such as the gray wolf, bald eagle, loon and osprey TRAVERSE CITY (AP) - An electric util- ity is selling 7,300 acres of land near hydro- power dams on several Upper Peninsula rivers for residential development, raising concerns about the environment and public access for fishing and other recreation. Upper Peninsula Power Co. announced last week it had closed the sale of 1,360 acres in Delta, Mar- quette and Ontonagon counties to Naterra Land Inc., a company that buys and sells waterfront and wooded properties for housing construction. Naterra plans to buy the remaining acre- age eventually although formal deals haven't been struck, said Roger Trudeau, director of real estate for UPPCO's parent company, WPS Resources Corp. of Green Bay, Wis. UPPCO has been shopping the land since 2002, wanting to shed the tax burden and main- tenance costs, Trudeau said. "We wanted to focus on our core business of generating electricity," he said in a telephone interview yesterday. UPPCO is among several corporate land- owners who have put sprawling Upper Penin- sula tracts on the market in recent years. The trend worries outdoor sports enthusi- asts, who complain about a proliferation of "No Trespassing" signs as woodlands are carved into smaller parcels and sold for vacation or retirement dwellings. Environmentalists say such fragmentation disrupts wildlife habitat and migration corridors. UPPCO says some local officials welcome the planned sales because they would bolster the tax base. The 7,300 acres are scattered along six hydro- power dams: Bond Falls, on the middle branch of the Ontonagon River in Ontonagon County; Cataract, on the Escanaba River in Marquette County; Boney Falls, on the Escanaba River in Delta and Marquette counties; Prickett, on the Sturgeon River in Houghton and Baraga counties; AuTrain, on the AuTrain River in Alger County; and Victoria, on the west branch of the Ontonagon River in Ontonagon County. The waters and surrounding land are home to sensitive wildlife species such as the gray wolf, bald eagle, loon and osprey. Hydropower licenses issued by the Fed- eral Energy Regulatory Commission require UPPCO to retain a buffer strip of waterfront land around each of the dam projects. The land being sold is outside the buffer strips. But in documents submitted to state and federal agencies, UPPCO said it planned some development within the buffer areas themselves, including construction of.docks, piers and foot- paths; installation of electrical lines; and land clearing to give homeowners a water view. FERC staffers urged company officials dur- ing a Jan. 4 meeting to make sure the devel- opment plans would not violate terms of their dam licenses, said John Estep of FERC's com- pliance division. The Michigan Department of Natural Resourc- es and the U.S. Forest Service sent memos to FERC last week, saying the company seemed to be planning "extensive shoreline development" that would conflict with license requirements. Among them: providing walk-in public access for hunting, fishing and sightseeing; retaining the shorelines' natural appearance; and protecting wildlife habitat and old growth forests. "Part of the problem is that UPPCO hasn't completed their development plans, so it's hard to assess the cumulative impact," said Jessica Mistak, a DNR fisheries biologist who wrote her agency's memo. In a statement Wednesday, the company said development plans were in the early stages and promised to seek public comment and continue talks with regulators before making final decisions. Trudeau said UPPCO and Naterra would "take great pains" to comply with the FERC licenses and environmental regulations. Pub- lic access to the buffer areas and waterfronts will continue-and the footpaths will improve it, he said. "Right now those lands are pretty rugged," he said. "The only way to get there is by boat or a pretty arduous walk through the woods." A citizens' group called the Upper Peninsula Pub- lic Access Coalition, which has accused UPPCO of trying to rush the land sales through without adequate oversight, said yesterday the company was becoming more conciliatory but hadn't gone far enough. University of Michigan 2006 MLK SYMPOSIUM A Time to Break Silence Emmett Till: The Untold Story Presented by Keith A. Beauchamp Documentary Filmmaker January 16, 2006 2:00pm Michigan Union Ballroom Sponsored By: University Library Co-Sponsored By: Bentley Historical Library, Information Technology Central Services, Law Library, Kresge Business Administration Library, School of Information, University Housing I iw MAI NL i Log 1 RESORT PREAKA PANMA CIY BEACH, FLORIDA ENTERTAINMENT & SPONSORS General Motors CobaltlHHR Promotion Reach Volleyball Tournament A f 6 0