e ic1 i n i1 Ann Arbor, Michigan Tuesday, February 3, 2009 michigandaily.com FUNDING HIGHER EDUCATION Gov. to ask for tuition freeze, 'U' undecided A passerby walks in front of the currently dark storefront of Red Hot Lovers yesterday. The eatery's owner said he is unsure if it will return to its location on East University. R edHo'su Granholm expected to call for steady tuition rates in exchange for funding By KYLE SWANSON Daily StaffReporter In her annual State of the State address tonight, Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm is expected to ask state colleges not to raise stu- dent tuition next year. But University officials aren't making any promises. In an interview yesterday, Vice Provost for Academic and Budget- ary Affairs Philip Hanlon said he wasn't yet aware of the specifics of Granholm's plan. He said the University hasn't determined if a tuition increase will be necessary next year. "We don't actuallyhave thespe- cifics of what Granholm is going to propose, but we look forward to learning more from her address tomorrow evening," Hanlon said. Granholm is expected to call for a tuition freeze at all state schools in exchange for increases in state funding and additional money from the stimulus pack- age currently being considered by the U.S; Senate. Granholm is also expected to penalize schools that raise tuition by decreasing state aid and possibly redirecting stim- ulus money. Last year Granholm made a similar call to universities, ask- ing them to cap tuition increases to the rate of inflation, then 2.3 percent. Granholm had planned to give universities a 3-percent increase in state funding last year, but the legislature reduced that amount to a 1-percent increase. When asked whether the Uni- versity would raise tuition next year, Hanlon would not comment, saying it was too early in the bud- get process to speculate about pos- sible tuition increases. "We're in the very early stages of developing next year's budgets so we're still trying to understand our costincreases,"hesaid. "We're working really hard on expendi- ture reduction efforts and we're also watching next year's enroll- ment very closely. Those are all very crucial things to our budget for next year." Although it's early in the bud- get process, Hanlon said the Uni- versity understands the economic difficulties families are facing and will make financial aid a major priority. See TUITION FREEZE, Page 7 Owner says he doesn't know when or where restaurant will reopen By MATT AARONSON Daily StaffReporter Red Hot Lovers used to be cam- pus's main destination for authentic Chicago-style hot dogs and late- night chili cheese waffle fries on a drunken stumble home. But since the beginning of this semester, the hopes of hungry students have been deflated by the scene at 629 E. University Ave.: stools upside down on tables, lights out and no one in sight. The closing is only temporary, though, according to Troy Slade, the restaurant's owner. Slade said he closed Red Hot Lovers for winter break, planning to open again when classes resumed, but an unforeseen conflictwiththe building's landlord has putcthings on hold. Slade said he intends to reopen but doesn't know when or where. "We will be somewhere in Ann Arbor, on campus," he said. "We're not going anywhere." Slade said his landlord, Dick Johnston, has offered him a one- year extension for his lease, which ends in about three months. With- out a lease offer of at least five years, though, Slade said he'll start looking for a new home for the res- taurant. Johnston could not be reached for comment. Operations at the restaurant were suspended because Slade didn't want to invest in a location that he might be vacating soon. "The place is old, and a lot of the equipment needs fixing up," he said. Slade expects a decision from Johnston this week about the lease and said that although he would prefer not to move, there's "a ton of locations" where landlords would be "thrilled to have a tenant like Red Hot's." "I'm sure if I moved it to South University (Avenue) people would go nuts," he said. "They'd love it." Slade said it doesn't make sense for any new business owner, espe- cially one who wants to expand, to take the risks involved with short- term lease commitments. See RED HOT, Page 7 CLEANING UP CITY STREETS Freshman pitches pla fo cty to recycle plastic cups Proposal asks City mulated too much waste. After becoming a finalist for the Council to include "Green Campus" category, Levine felt confident enough to pitch his No.6 plastics in idea to City Council. cling code "I thought, I can't just stop recy ng c here," he said. "I really wanted to implement it, and that's why I By LARA ZADE went to City Council." Daily StaffReporter Levine first introduced his pro- posal to City Council at its Jan. 20 LSA freshman Alex Levine has meeting. Since then, he has talked a plan to give a greener fate to the to some members who informed sea of red plastic cups that layer him that the issue of expanding the city's streets after every home the city's recycling policy was not football game. anew idea. Levine is working with the Ann Margie Teall (D-Ward 4), one Arbor City Council to enable the of the council members who con- city to include polystyrene, or No. tacted Levine, said in an e-mail 6 plastic - the type of plastic from interview that the city's recycling which those plastic cups are made options are something the City - in its current recycling code. Council continues to monitor. Currently, the city only recycles Bryan Weinert, the solid waste No. 1 and No. 2 plastics, meaning coordinator for the City of Ann that all No. 6 plastics, including Arbor, released a written response the red or blue plastic cups com- to address residents' concern over monly used for tailgating, are plastics recyclingabout 16 months Student governments hold forum Though few turned out, attendees asked many questions By DANIEL STRAUSS Daily StaffReporter Five student governments met in a town hall style forum last night to field questions and complaints from University students. Despite a low turnout, represen- tatives from LSA Student Govern- ment, the Student-Athlete Advisory Council, Michigan Student Assem- bly, the Residence Halls Associa- tion and the University of Michigan Engineering Council answered many questions from the roughly 35 people who attended. The government panelists said asked about the Student-Athlete Advisory Council. "I was interested in some of the projects that SAAC was doing." Hlebasko said. Skylar Andrews, president of SAAC, said the council had com- pleted a number of projects, includ- ing the Mock Rock fundraising show and a push to give athletes priority registration. Jeff Kenney, a housing officer in South Quad, asked what the student governments are doing to antici- pate the possibility of an increasing number ofUniversitystudents with mental health issues. "What consideration are any of your organizations giving to the growing number of students with mental health concerns in higher ed?" Kenney asked. "It's because of See TOWN HALL, Page 7 Attendees raise their hands at last night's student government town hail reeting. they were happy with the questions that were asked but disappointed more people didn't come to vent or ask questions. Most of the questions centered on the University's spending and how it affects students and student government visibility. LSA sopho- more Laura Hlebasko, who is on LSA-SG but was not on the panel, PERFORMING FOR A CAUSE Tenth Mock Rock to raise more than $55,000 thrown away. Levine thought of the idea after entering a contest through "MPowered," a University group that exposes students to entrepre- neurial opportunities. He entered the "Green Campus" category because he thought the city accu- ago. In his statement, Weinert acknowledged that the city has been conservative in adding new materials to its recycling program because of the criteria that have to beconsideredbefore allowingnew See RECYCLING, Page 7 Tonight's fundraiser put on by athletic teams will benefit two charities By ELYANA TWIGGS For the Daily A decade after Mock Rock began, the student-athlete variety show is returning for yet another year to raise money for C.S. Mott Children's Hospital and a local arts program for adolescents. The show will feature 19 athletic teams - the largest number in the program's history - and is expected to raise at least $55,000 for charity. Michigan football legend and Heisman trophy winner Desmond Howard will emcee the event. The fundraiser, which will be held tonight at Hill Auditorium, is an annual event put on by the Stu- dent-Athlete Advisory Council that features the University's varsity athletes competing in various tal- ent competitions. At the end of the show, the audience will choose the winner by sending a text message with their votes. Last year, the event raised around $40,000. This year's goal is $80,000, and SAAC has raised about $55,000 so far, with the bulk of funds coming from sponsorships and personal donations. Tickets to the event are $10. In past years, athletic teams would only sell tickets but now student-athletes are more actively participating in the fundraising process by collecting individual donations. Laura Dunn, a Mock Rock co- chair and secretary of the Student- Athlete Advisory Council, said she is amazed at what the athletes have already accomplished. "The athletes feel a certain con- nection to the event," Dunn said. "The event is all about athletics and all about community." Dunn said she was proud of the program's efforts to support the community. See MOCK ROCK, Page 7 WEATHER +M H 1:13 TOMORROW Lo: 2 GOT A NEWS TIP? Call 734-763-2459 or e-mail news@michigandaily.com and let us know. NEW ON MICHIGANDAILY.COM Beilein talks foul that got Manny Harris ejected. THEGAME.BLOGS.MICHIGANDAILY.COM INDEX NEWS ...................................2 CLASSIFIEDS ........................6 Vol. CXIX, No. 86 OPINION ...... ..................4 SUDOKU ............................8 Cc2009TheMichigan Daily ARTS............ SPORT ............................. 8 wichigonduilycom rI