0 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
Thursday, September 23, 2010 - 5A
The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom Thursday, September 23, 2010 - 5A
Fraternities get creative to
cope with temporary housing
Delta Upsilon and
Sigma Phi Epsilon in
temporary quarters
By VERONICA MENALDI
Daily StaffReporter
With fraternity and soror-
ity recruitment in full swing this
week, Greek organizations on
campus are taking advantage of
their houses to show prospective
pledges part of what Greek life has
to offer.
But two fraternities on cam-
pus - Delta Upsilon and Sigma
Phi Epsilon - are using some-
what temporary housing situ-
ations to recruit new members
this fall.
Delta Upsilon - the fraternity
house that burned down in 2008
- is scheduled to have its house
reconstructed by January, said
LSA senior and president John
Stevens.
The chapter and those involved
in its reconstruction were delayed
three months over the summer
after issues arose during negotia-
tions with an insurance company.
The negotiations, Stevens said,
centered on the installation of a
$500,000 Heating Ventilating and
Air Conditioning system in the
house.
Stevens said instead of settling
the cost of installation and con-
tinuingthe rebuilding process, the
alumni in charge of the construc-
tion planning decided to focus first
on cheaper aspects like electricity
and plumbing.
Negotiations with the insurance
company were settled within the
past few weeks, Stevens said, and
external construction has restart-
ed along with the installation of
the HVAC system.
Stevens added that the alumni
are concerned not with building
the house quickly but rather build-
ing one that will last with energy-
efficient systems, like the HVAC
system and electronic locks on the
main doors.
"Our fraternity house is the old-
est one on campus built for a fra-
ternity, and we plan to keep that
tradition going far into the 22nd
century," Stevens said.
The majority of the brothers
that are planning on living in the
house at the start of next year
are currently living at 1315 Cam-
bridge St., with a few other mem-
bers residing in a house on White
Street.
Stevens said the lack of a physi-
cal fraternity house has not hin-
dered recruitment efforts, adding
that the chapter is in fact having
one of its most successful recruit-
ments in recent memory.
"We're making the best of what
was dealt to us," he said. "We got
handed some lemons, and we're
making lemonade."
Another fraternity without a
designated fraternity house last
year, Sig Ep, has relocated to a
house at 704 Hill St., chapter pres-
ident Rick Stepanovic wrote in an
e-mail interview.
Stepanovic, who is an LSA
junior, wrote that the chapter's
Alumni Volunteer Corporation
found the new house, which used
to be leased to several groups unaf-
filiated with the Greek communi-
ty. The house is now leased to Sig
Ep for two years with the option of
renewal for up to 10 years.
The tentative plan, Stepanovic
wrote, is to stay in the newfound
location unless a more desirable
property becomes available to
them.
"Ironically, this is not the first
time Sig Ep has been located
at the intersection of State and
Hill," Stepanovic wrote in the
e-mail. "For roughly 70 years, we
owned a house located where the
Ford School of Public Policy now
stands."
Stepanovic added that hav-
ing a house this year is helping
with recruitment, given the new
house's convenient location and
"spacious" front lawn.
"However, as can be seen by
our recruitment success last year,"
Stepanovic wrote, "a fraternity is
much more than a building."
JASON DECROW/AP
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao addresses a dinner, hosted by the National Committee on US-China Relations and the US-China
Business Council, at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel yesterday. Jiabao is scheduled to address the U.N. General Assembly today.
Chinese Prim.ier Wen optimistic
for futurj"e of US., Cina relat ions
College Dems. and Republicans
host events to educate, rally voters
From Page 1A
make Michigan a place that we all
want to stay and work in."
The group hopes to work with
neighboring universities, like
Michigan State University, to con-
tinue to increase support for Sny-
der.
"I believe that the students who
are involved in the campaign for
RickSnyder,are intereste4 ir pull-
ing people together more toward
a common ground," Strecher said.
Brendan Campbell, chairof Col"
lege Democrats, said he believes
that despite the fact that Snyder
has received increased support
from Democrats, Virg Bernero is
the best candidate for represent-
ing student needs, largely because
he strongly supports greater fund-
ing for Michigan's schools.
"Virg Bernero has consistently
demonstrated that he's going to
invest in education, both K-12 and
higher education, and adequately
fund education to the point that
it needs to be funded," Campbell
said. "We think that students have
been hit hard enough, and that it's
time students vote for a candidate
who's looking out for their best
interests."
LSA senior Joshua Arocho,
the communications director for
Wolverines for Rick Snyder, said
that while Snyder has widespread
appeal that transcends partisan
lines, his election could also make
strides for the Republican Party.
"We feel like we can make a
pretty big impact on this tradition-
ally liberal campus," Arocho said.
Arocho added that the group
aims to gain more members
through an upcoming mass meet-
ing. Group members are also try-
ing to host a town hall-type event
for Snyder to speak to students,
as well as have him speak on the
steps of the Michigan Union in the
week leading up to the election.
Charles Bogren, chairman
of College Republicans, said he
believes Snyder has been receiving
increased support because he is
genuinely concerned about fixing
the state, in addition to his strong
business background.
"He's a self-made man," Bogren
said. "He's clearly an intelligent
person who knows whetiha elednts
to do in the business world and
wants to bring that over to the
political side and fix the state of
Michigan. I think that's resonated
really well with a lot of people in
this state because this state has
had a lot of problems in the past."
Bogren said the support Sny-
der has received from Democrats
shows his dedication to improv-
ing the state and uniting people
together to reach this goal.
"I think a lot of the crossover
votes show how passionate he
is about fixing and re-inventing
Michigan," Bogren said. "He's
done a really good job at reach-
ing out to all corners across the
board."
In addition to mobilizing stu-
dents to vote for Snyder, Bogren
said the most important way for
College Republicans to garner
support for Republican candidates
is through grassroots efforts.
"We're focusing mainly on the
actual student body, just trying to
get them out to the meetings, talk-
ing to them, wherever we can,"
Bogren said. "We're just kind of
getting our message across and
showing that there is an alterna-
tive to just the Dems on this cam-
pus."
Bogren said College Republi-
cans has been working to bring
Republican candidates to speak
on campus, including Republican
National Committee Chairman
Michael Steele. They have also
been campaigning from the Fix
Michigan Center on State Street,
making phone calls urging citi-
zens to vote for Republicans.
Similarly, College Democrats
has been working to "actively,
engage and encourage" students,
acc6rding 50-ampbell.
"The most important thing that
we're doing on campus is mobi-
lizing students in their residence
halls, so that they talk with their
neighbors and encourage their
neighbors to register to vote and to
vote democratic," Campbell said.
Over the past few weeks, Col-
lege Democrats has brought in
candidates like U.S. Rep. John
Dingell (D-Mich), U.S. Rep. Mark
Schauer (D-Mich.), U.S. Rep.
Gary Peters (D-Mich.) and former
Democratic presidential candidate
Howard Dean. They also invited
Democratic candidate for Michi-
gan Secretary of State Jocelyn
Benson last Thursday to speak
with students.
Campbell said the group hopes
to bring in more candidates in the
weeks to come, as well as contin-
ue to help Democrats campaign
across the state, particularly in
areas where a competitive race is
anticipated.
They also plan to take a trip
to Grand Rapids, Mich. during
fall break to campaign for David
LaGrand, Democratic candidate
for state senate, and Patrick Miles,
Democratic candidate for the U.S.
House of Representatives.
Statement comes as
U.S. claims Chinese
currency policy
costs American jobs
NEW YORK (AP) - Chinese
Premier Wen Jiabao expressed
optimism yesterday that the
United States and China would
resolve major trade frictions,
even as he rejected U.S. claims
that Beijing's currency policies
cost American jobs.-
Despite sometimes tough
words, Wen used much of a
speech on the sidelines of a Unit-
ed Nations global summit to try
to ease U.S. anger against China
ahead of a meeting today with
President Barack Obama.
Relations between the pow-
ers have suffered recently, but
Wen sought to play down eco-
nomic, military and diplomatic
tensions. The United States and
China, Wen told business lead-
ers gathered at the Waldorf-
Astoria hotel,= are "not rivals
in competition but partners in
cooperation." IV1 'r1i i' i
Wen, however, pushed back
against U.S. claims that Beijing's
tightly regulated, underval-
ued currency - the yuan - gives
China's exporters an artificial
advantage over U.S. manufactur-
ers. Ahead of U.S. congressional
elections in November and at a
time of high American unem-
ployment, China's economic and
trade policies are a major friction
in ties with Washington.
Wen warned that China's cur-
rency must not be turned into a
political issue between the coun-
tries. He saw no link between the
yuan's value and China's trade
advantage over the United States.
The politically sensitive U.S.
trade deficit with China jumped
to $26.2 billion in June, the larg-
est one-month gap since October
2008.
"We do not seek a trade sur-
plus," Wen said through an inter-
preter. Many Chinese companies,
he said, would go bankrupt and
workers would suffer if the Chi-
nese currency rose drastically.
The Obama administration
must balance pressure on Bei-
jing's economic policies with
its desire for Chinese help in
settling nuclear standoffs with
North Korea and Iran and on
other global initiatives. China
is a veto-wielding member of
the U.N. Security Council and
recently passed Japan as the
world's second-biggest economy.
Speaking ahead of Wen, U.S.
Commerce Secretary Gary Locke
pushedfor a change i- China'st
currency policy and called for a
fair business environment that
allows Americans to compete
with Chinese companies and
invest without hindrance.
Locke said a "worldwide
rebalancing, in which America
buys a little less and sells a little
more to China and the rest of the
world, will create a more pros-
perous future for everyone." He
said "strong and lasting global
growth cannot be built on the
backs of debt-ridden U.S. con-
sumers."
Some U.S. lawmakers are
pushing for a bill that would pun-
ish China if it doesn't do more to
let the yuan rise.
Obama, speaking Monday in
Washington, said China's cur-
rency "is valued lower than
market conditions would say it
should be."
"So it gives them an advantage
in trade," Obama said. "We are
going to continue to insist that on
this issue, and on all trade issues
between us and China, that it's a
two-way street."
Currency is not the only point
of tension between the countries.
Thursday's Obama-Wen meet-
ing also comes as China lashes
out at the United States for what
Beijing says is interference in its
territorial disputes in the South
China Sea. China is also angry
over U.S. arms sales to Beijing
rival Taiwan and Obama's meet-
log earlier this year with the
Dalai Lama, the exiled Tibetan
Buddhist leader China calls a
separatist.
Still, Wen was consistently
optimistic in his speech, saying
the countries' common interests
far outweigh differences.
"We don't have any reason to
let our relationship back-peddle,"
Wen said, and "tens of thousands
of reasons" to move forward in
strengthening ties.
GOOGLE
From Page 1A
city is currently waiting to hear
which locations Google will chose.
He estimated that of the 1,100
Google received a selected group of
those applications will be looked at
in more detail. Google employees
will probably scope out potential
Google Fiber communities, he said.
"So we're waiting to see and
we're excited to hear, hopefully, if
we're on the 'short list,"' he said.
While Google has not said how
many cities will be selected as win-
ners, the project's website said it
will reach between 50,000 and
500,000 people.
Crawford, who helped fill out
the application, said he and other
members of the community gath-
ered data on the city and had the
opportunity to write a few essays
about why Ann Arbor should be
chosen. The essays are available at
www.a2fiber.com.
"We have an intelligent commu-
nity in Ann Arbor (that) is already
highly wired," Crawford said.
"There's just a tremendous amount
of opportunity here, and I think it
would be fantastic for Ann Arbor
and for Google."
Rackham student Augie Hill,
a member of the "Ann Arbor for
Google Fiber" Facebook group
which had members as of late last
night, said he thinks Ann Arbor
would benefit greatly by becoming
a Google Fiber trial location.
"Making Ann Arbor the first
place in the world for the next
round of technological' improve-
ments would bring much attention,
opportunity and prosperity to the
city and region," Hill said.
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