Northwestern students quizzed Evanston officials about the “brothel law” and other issues related to off-campus life during an Associated Student Government Senate meeting Wednesday night.
After the officials left, ASG senators debated $21,000 in funding recommendations for B-status student groups.
Town-gown forum
The officials, Mayor Elizabeth Tisdahl and Alds. Delores Holmes (5th) and Jane Grover (7th), who each represent wards with high student populations, each gave short opening statements and then answered questions for an hour.
In her opening speech, Tisdahl assured students that the city will not change its enforcement of a housing ordinance that prohibits more than three unrelated people from living together and could lead to evictions of students.
“The city does not go around evicting our citizens,” Tisdahl said. “If I thought that Northwestern University students were going to be evicted, I would be here doing everything I could to help you not to be evicted.”
As in the past, the mayor said the city was never planning to change its enforcement of the ordinance, despite statements to the contrary by Jeff Murphy, the city’s top official related to building inspections, last month.
The University and ASG have been working to bring city officials to a Senate meeting since a controversy erupted over Murphy’s statements. Wednesday was the first day that worked with the officials’ schedule, Dean of Students Burgwell Howard wrote in an e-mail Wednesday afternoon to all NU students who live off campus.
Howard attended the meeting along with Assistant Dean of Students Betsi Burns, who is also working on off-campus living issues.
ASG senators also asked the officials about other housing issues, crime and the possibility of consolidating NU students into one ward. Currently, students are spread across three districts, diluting their influence in Evanston City Council.
The officials promised to investigate the redistricting issue, but would not promise to make students into a protected voting bloc.
“I think you need to show up to vote more before I would try to get a ward of students,” Tisdahl said.
The mayor also urged students to move “past the old feud days” of bitter town-gown relations.
“Just get over it,” Tisdahl said of trouble between the university and city.
B-status funding
After the Evanston officials left, ASG spent most of the rest of the meeting distributing funds to B-status student groups.
The funding debate dragged on due to the large amount of student groups who requested additional money from the Senate – 13 of the 40 that were allocated money by the Student Groups Committee.
“(The large number of requests) clearly shows a huge increase in communication between student groups and ASG and also a better understanding of the funding process on the part of student groups, SGC Vice President Elizabeth Broder said.
Each group was called out in order to request additional funding. The night began with $1,007.17 available in supplementary funding. By the end of the more than two-hour event, only $2.17 was left.
Highlights of the process included a long procedural battle over how much money to give Special Olympics and the representative for Tonik Tap literally jumping for joy after ASG awarded her group the last $60.
Next week’s Senate meeting should be contentious, as the legislature is scheduled to discuss President Claire Lew’s controversial proposal to restructure Senate.
