SLAM& s th f On campus and around Ann Arbor, a devotion to the power of the spoken word. APAGE 3B Ann Arbor, Michigan Thursday, October 21, 2010 michigandaily.com FOOTBALL SATURDAYS .'U'considers plan to close Main Street for gameday Official: Measures Street to their property, Brown said, adding that access accom- would reduce risk modations would be made only for those people and their guests, of car bombings pedestrians and emergency vehi- cles. By DAVID BUCILLI Other parts of the plan include Daily StaffReporter closing the right-turn lane of Sta- dium Boulevard onto Main Street, University officials are devel- closing Keech Street from Main to oping a plan that, if implemented, Greene streets and limiting access would close down part of Main on Greene Street from Hoover to Street on football Saturdays as Keech streets. an extra precaution to prevent There's no set time frame for potential terrorist attacks during when the plan could be enacted, games. Brown said. The move to shut down areas Comments about the plan being around Main Street could thwart implemented during November possible car bombings, accord- home games or next year are "spec- ing to Department of Public Safety ulative at best," Brown said, adding spokeswoman Diane Brown said. that the University held a meeting "The whole premise behind the with neighboring residents of the Michigan Stadium Vehicle-Free Big House for input on a possible Zone is to reduce the risk of a vehi- plan. cle-borne bomb or a vehicle-borne "We needed that information attack," Brown said. and meeting in order to go further," The plan would close down five she said. blocks of Main Street along the City of Ann Arbor spokeswoman west side of the Big House between Lisa Wondrash said the city hasn't Stadium and Pauline boulevards heard any information on a pro- during football games and other posal to be submitted to the City big events. Council. "There would be five properties "There's nothing on our end to on Main Street within that zone report," Wondrash said, remarking that only have access" from Main See MAIN STREET, Page 5A PAT. A R fPPURITER SAMANTHA TRAUBEN/Daily Assistant Physics Prof. Jeff McMahon (front) and Assistant Art & Design Prof. Osman Khan chat before an event at Cottage Inn yesterday about their work in each of the poles. At the South Pole, McMahon built a telescope to study cosmic ricrowave background radiation, and Kahn traveled to the North Pole to create art that evokes desperation. City Council scraps plantcut costs byturning ff streetlihs Residents, council members say lights necessary for safety By NATHAN RANNS For the Daily City Council members recently voted to repeal plans to turn off nearly 17 percent of city street- lights after facing complaints from a significant number of concerned citizens who were involved in a neighborhood-specific pilot pro- gram. The pilot program was imple- mented to gauge residents' response to the reduced lighting, which aimed to save the city about $120,000, according to Council- member Christopher Taylor (D- Ward 3). After receiving several complaints from affected residents and walking on the corridors with unlit streets alongside residents, Taylor and Ann Arbor Mayor John Hieftje sponsored a motion to call off plans to expand the reduced lighting throughout the city at a meeting earlier this month. City officials determined how manystreetlights to shutoffbased on a standard passed in 1970 that determined the minimum amount of lighting necessary for safely operating vehicles. But after talk- ing with residents, Taylor said there's more than just vehicular safety that must be taken into con- sideration. "The pilot program demon- See STREETLIGHTS, Page SA Two rifles but no ticket: Man may face charges for Big House entry National Guard member allegedly lied to security to get into MSU game By CAITLIN HUSTON Daily StaffReporter A National Guard member could soon face charges after he gained entry to the Big House during the Michigan State game without a ticket. University Police confirmed that the 42-year-old man parked a mili- tary vehicle near the field, while dressed in a full military honor guard uniform and armed with two rifles without any ammunition, AnnArbor.com reported. Department of Public Safety spokeswoman Diane Brown said in an interview with The Michi- gan Daily that police did check the man's weapons when he parked at the Department of Public Safety building on Kipke Drive by the sta- dium to make sure he didn't present any danger to spectators. Brown said honor guard mem- bers and their commanders raise and lower the flag on field at every home game, according to AnnAr- bor.com. Because officers at the Public Safety building do not have a list of honor guard members per- mitted on the field, the man was able to gain entry as he was dressed in the honor guard uniform. In the interview with the Daily, Brown also said that the man told several officers at several different checkpoints that he was authorized to be on the field. Once at the stadium, the man entered through the tunnel to gain access to the field, Brown told AnnArbor.com. After another honor guard mem- ber told security officials that the man was not authorized to partici- pate in the ceremony, University Police escorted the man out of the stadium during the game. Brown told the Daily that the man was "very compliant" and told police he made his way onto the field in uniform because he could not geta ticket. Though the man's name has not been released, Brown told AnnAr- bor.com he is in a National Guard See CHARGES, Page SA Center for Engineering Diversity and Outreach managing director Robert Scott (right) talks with attendees at a town hall meeting hosted by University of Michigan Engineering Council last night. LGBT rights activist Jim Toy (back left) also spoke at the event. UMEC event takes hard look at campus diversity Michigan in Washington marks year five Gay rights activist Jim Toy calls out Yost chants as homophobic' By BETHANY BIRON DailyStaffReporter The University of Michigan Engineering Council hosted a town hall meeting at the Lurie Engineering Center last night that featured discussion on the importance of establishing a posi- tive social climate on campus and increasing tolerance among stu- dents. A panel of University officials opened the program, including Jim Toy, a leading gay rights activ- ist in the state and co-founder of what is now called the Spectrum Center, Director of the Office of Services for Students with Dis- abilities Stuart Segal, Associate Dean of the College of Engineer- ing James Holloway, and Direc- tor of the Center for Engineering Diversity and Outreach Robert Scott. The group spoke to a crowd of about 75 students about increas- ing diversity on campus and then opened up the floor for questions. In light of recent incidences of bullying against LGBT young people, including Michigan Stu- dent Assembly President Chris Armstrong, Toy spoke about why the Spectrum Center is a crucial tool for gay, lesbian and trans- gendered students on campus. As a co-founder, Toy helped launch the center - which was called the Office of LGBT Affairs at the time See TOWN HALL, Page SA Program alums say experience helped them network, expand horizons By KAITLIN WILLIAMS Daily StaffReporter This year marks the fifth anni- versary of the University's Michi- gan in Washington program, but the anniversary isn't a milestone organizers necessarily expected when the program first launched. The University's contract with the University of California to lease housing in Washington D.C. only stretched five years, but officials were able to renew the contract last year until 2014 thanks to the sustained success of the program. A fifth anniversary celebration is scheduled in Washington D.C. this weekend. Michigan in Washington sends approximately 50 University undergraduate students from all majors to intern and take courses in Washington D.C. each semester. While in D.C., students take 12 to 15 credit hours and work in an intern- ship position of their choosing. Tracey Baetzel, the Michigan in Washington program coordina- tor, said through the ability to pick their own internships, students are able to create their own path within the program. See ANNIVERSARY, Page 5A WEATHER HI: 59 GOT A NEWS TIP? TO Call 734-763-2459 or e-mail TOMORROW LO: ' news@michigandaily.com and let us know. Y. NEWONMICHGANDALYCOM INDEX NEWS.... . . . 2A CLASSIFIEDS.. ..A........A Photo slideshow of Sufjan Stevens in Royal Oak. Vol. CXX No. 31 SU DOKU............................3A S PORTS..............A...............7A MICHIGANDAILY.COM/BLOGS/THE VIEWFINDER T2HThB Michigan Daily OPINION ....4A THt 1-SIDt .... michiyordoily.com1B