Ir^ r’ i n
The Battalion • Page 7 ..||
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Thursday • June 1, 1995
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TT"me Battalion
Established in 1893
Editorials appearing in The Battalion reflect the views
of the editorials board. They do not necessarily reflect
the opinions of other Battalion staff members, the
Texas A&M student body, regents, administration,
faculty or staff. Columns, guest columns, cartoons
and letters express the opinions of the authors.
Contact the opinion editor for information on
submitting guest columns.
Editorials Board
Jay Robbins
Editor in Chief
Rob Clark
Managing Editor
Sterling Hayman
Opinion Editor
Kyle Littlefield
Assistant Opinion Editor
It’s About Time
Historic Northgate receives a
much-needed face lift.
Last night the City of Col
lege Station presented the con
clusions of a study concerning
the first step for revitalizing
the Northgate area. The city
currently is taking serious
steps to give this historic area
of College Station a series of
much-needed face lifts. Regard
less of the need for such reno
vations, officials should ensure
that enacting the project does
not prove to be too detrimental
to area businesses.
Currently, reconstruction is
under way on the strip of Col
lege Main extending from Uni
versity Drive to Church Street.
The project has closed the road
to all automotive traffic and
has eliminated all parallel
parking in front of College
Main businesses. This loss of
traffic and adequate parking
has created problems for many
Northgate establishments.
Although College Main
must be closed in order to re
place the gas and water lines,
the construction obviously is
affecting business. The city
should ensure the project is
completed on or before the Aug.
1 deadline, for many of the
businesses depend heavily on
the traffic of returning stu
dents.
Also, the appearance of the
area is in much need of im
provement. In fact, when for
mer President George Bush
visits College Station, his hosts
avoid Northgate because it is
such an eyesore. Businesses
continue to survive in this dy
namic area, despite its run
down appearance. However,
Northgate could withstand
many improvements, and the
city should continue to promote
its renovation.
Almost as old as the Univer
sity itself, Northgate has
played host to a variety of busi
nesses, from a theater to a
pornography store to a coffee
house. Despite all of the
changes that Northgate has
witnessed, however, the condi
tion and appearance of the
area have steadily declined
over the years.
It is now time to give North-
gate a face-lift — to give the
area even more character and
appeal. In the process, though,
the city should be careful not to
damage what is already there.
Inconveniences worth future benefits
Kyle
Littlefield
Asst. Opinion
Editor
I t just goes to show that
things do actually change
in Aggieland. Northgate,
an area known for its historic
stores and bars, is undergoing
a face lift, which has owners
and customers alike in a sort
of stupor.
The first stage of revital
ization, which is a project of
the City of College Station Development Ser
vices Department, has a portion of College
Main, from University Drive to the Church
Street intersection closed to traffic until ap
proximately August 1.
The closing of the street has left about
four feet of sidewalk on each side of the
street allowing pedestrian access to the busi
nesses that line the street.
The inconvenience of not being able to
park on the street and the fact that the con
struction is an eyesore to the area, has
meant slow days for businesses along the
street.
Many are wondering if these inconve
niences, which could be fatal to small-busi
ness owners, will be worth it in the long run.
Will the revitalized Northgate, mean more
business? And if it does, will the same shops
be around to see it?
The first weeks of summer have business
owners speculating what’s to come. Many
can not conclude if the construction has hurt
their business, because the street was
blocked off during A&M’s interim, a usual
slow time for businesses.
Some stores are disappointed because the
city has added insult to injury; Baker Hart of
Software Exchange claims that his store did
not know about the project until a week be
fore the construction began. However, to the
city’s credit, he did say that three contractors
associated with the project
have offered their assistance.
But really, what could they
do?
“Well, for one thing,” owner
of Trade Winds Bead Co. Carol
White said, “I am upset that
they hit us at the slowest time
— the summer.”
White wishes the city would
have consulted the businesses over when the
project was done.
Todd Traylor, manager of Marooned
Records has a different sentiment. “It’s really
easy to get mad about it, but I’m glad they are
doing this in the summer, and not in the fall.”
Traylor explains that many of the businesses
establish their clientele right before the fall
semester when students are returning to Col
lege Station or arriving for the first time.
If businesses such as the Aggie Cleaners,
Sarge’s and the Northgate Barbershop set up
this repeat clientele, then it can make for a
financially successful year. If they don’t —
which Traylor fears would have happened if
the construction occurred in the fall — it
could be bad news.
In other words, the nature of the business
determines how they are affected. Whereas
Northgate Barbershop may not be affected
because it has already established relation
ships with repeat customers, the relatively
new businesses may experience a decrease in
business.
The main gripe of the businesses affected
by the construction is that the city of College
Station has not done an adequate job of com
municating to potential customers that, yes,
they are still open for business.
“The way the construction has blocked off
the streets, it looks like we’re not open,” says
Michael Gessner of Aggie Cleaners.
Traylor says that the city did print up
some fliers that let the customers know the
businesses would be open. The only problem
is that in large, bold type it reads, “College
Main Closes for Reconstruction,” and then
further down in the notice, in smaller type, it
says that the businesses will remain open.
Bemie Gessner the owner of Aggie Clean
ers took the matter into his own hands and
printed his own notice, which lists all of the
stores lining the closed street and reads in
large type, “WE WILL BE OPEN DURING
THIS TIME.”
However, in the midst of the inconve
nience, the stores are trying to remain posi
tive. “As long as they get it done quickly, it
won’t hurt ... besides, they are re-doing the
sidewalks, which will make business better,”
Hart says.
Even White of Trade Winds Bead Co.,
could find something positive.
“Having the street closed has forced peo
ple to walk by all of the stores, whereas when.
parking was available, they had the option of
parking in front of the store of their choice.
Now people walking by will notice all of the
business’ signs and windows which may help
business,” she said.
It is important to remember that the city 1-
should not be perceived as the “bad guy” in
this ordeal. Revitalization, while it may in- *<
convenience customers and business owners *•
for a while, will most likely increase business -'
and beautify the area.
The positive attitudes of the businesses
should be commended. Hopefully, when
Northgate’s revitalization is complete, busi
ness will be better, and all of the same busi
nesses will be there to see it.
Kyle Littlefield is a senior-
journalism major'
.<s
Spectacle reflects
on University
I was dining with my hus
band and our two sons last
week in a local restaurant when
I had the displeasure of running
into one of our A&M former stu
dents. We were sitting at a
table next to a recently-gradu
ated Aggie who was an embar
rassment to himself and our
University.
This individual obviously felt
that it was necessary to fill his
vocabulary with every vulgar
word in our language to prove
that he was a real man.
In order to not make a scene,
our family asked the waitress to
move us to another table so that
our children would not be sub
jected to this Aggie’s form of air
pollution.
After we moved, the waitress
told us that he had sworn at her
earlier.
As Aggies, we are visible
bunch. As we wear our A&M
embossed T-shirts, baseball
hats and shorts, we are walking
advertisements for our Univer
sity. With that in mind, we
should represent our University
and ourselves in a respectable
manner.
I know that the Aggie Code
does not say, “ ... Lie, Cheat or
Curse,” but in a a manner of
speaking it does.
I am not standing on a pul
pit condemning everyone who
uses a few embellishing words
on occasion.
Lord knows I do it, too. How
ever, there is a time and place
for everything, and using foul
language in a public setting —
or even worse, around children
— is inexcusable.
The way we present our
selves does reflect on us all. I
was embarrassed for us all as I
had to explain to my sons that
although this person wore the
A&M insignia, he really had no
idea what being an Aggie is all
about.
Think about it. When you are
in a public place where there
are little Aggies present, please
think about how they see you.
What we do and say will lead
them by example. Let’s make it
the right example.
Pamela McCown
Class of ‘93
New gun law will
help, not hinder
I am writing to express my
concern about Elizabeth Pre
ston’s May 29 column. I resent
her implication that any law-
abiding person who wishes to
defend himself or herself
against crime is an “irate gun-
carrier” who poses a threat to
society.
Preston states that “the peo
ple who want to carry a gun
badly enough to go through the
application process ... are the
people who need guns the
least.”
I plan to get a permit as soon
as possible. Does that make me
a crazed, slobbering fool who
will seek out innocent victims
for target practice?
With the passage of the law,
citizens will be able to carry
their firearms for protection
without being made to feel like
criminals themselves. Real
criminals will be deterred by
the possibility that any person
they approach may be trained
and willing to defend himself or
herself.
As for the possibility of a
“Wild West” atmosphere in
which people shoot each other
over parking spaces, consider
this: the kinds of people who
are unstable enough to do such
a thing will not be able to pass
the extensive training and psy
chological examination that
will be required to have a per
mit. Such people would likely
have criminal records and
would be denied permits any
way.
In her column, Preston states
that she is concerned “that one
or two people will lose their
lives prematurely.” What about
the hundreds of defenseless
people who lose their lives pre
maturely every day at the
hands of criminals?
The concealed weapon law
gives citizens a chance to bal
ance the odds and fight back.
Gun-control lobbyists have ral
lied around the slogan, “If gun
control saves one life, it will be
worth it.” But if my gun saves
my life, isn’t that worth it also?
Erika Prater
Class of ’95
Holiday should be
given coverage
I would like to commend The
Battalion on another well-done job.
On one of our nation’s most
important holidays. The Battal
ion chose to honor those people
who have spilled their blood
and given their lives so that
Americans can be free, with a
two-inch by two-inch paragraph
in the News Brief section in the
corner of page two. No front
page glitz and no bold-faced
headlines.
I am referring to the lack of
coverage of any type of Memorial
Day services in the May 29 Bat-
talion. On page seven of this same
issue, The Battalion editorial col- ^
umn stated that, “The Battalion’s
mission is to serve its readership *\f
by providing the most accurate*, '7*
relevant, and timely information 7'
as possible.” iK
I believe a school such as^I
Texas A&M, one that is so rich f- ]
in a tradition and history of V
serving its country in both ;1>
peace and times of war, does in-
deed find the observance of- *-
Memorial Day relevant.
It is the Battalion’s responsi
bility to see that it prints those.'
subjects and issues that are rel
evant to Aggies.
The Battalion should not let
a leftist stance or what is con
sidered politically correct-,.'-
stand in the way of printing
what is important.
Millions of people, both mili-
tary and civilian, gave the ultL-^
mate sacrifice during World-; 1 '
War II. Because of their valiant 7
service, many brave people did---
not come home to their families
and friends.
I firmly believe and sincerely j
hope that these sacrifices will
never be forgotten or taken for’'-”
granted.
Bryan A. HiH ^
Class of ’95 f
TThe R/vttt/njli c>n
Editorial Staff
Jay ROBBINS, Editor in Chief
Rob CLARK, Managing Editor
Sterling Hayman, Opinion editor
Gretchen Perrenot, City Editor
JODY Holley, Night News Editor
Stacy Stanton, night News editor
MICHAEL LANDAUER, Aggielife Editor
Nick GeORGANDIS, Sports Editor
Stew Milne, photo Editor
Staff Members
City Desk - Assistant Editor: Eleanor Colvin; Re
porters: Katherine Arnold, Javier Hino
josa, Scott McMahan, Jill Saunders,
Michael Simmons, Wes Swift & Tara
Wilkinson
Aggielife Desk — Feature Writers: Kristen Adams,
Amy Collier & Libe Goad; Columnist:
Amy Uptmor
Sportswriters - David Winder and Lee Wright
Opinion Desk - Assistant Editor: Kyle Littlefield;
Columnists: Elizabeth Preston, Frank
Stanford & David Taylor; Contributing
Columnists: Justin Barnett, Margaret Gor
don, Alex Miller, Chris Stidvent & Mark
Zane; Editorial Writers: Jason Brown &
Alex Walters; Editorial Cartoonists:
Brad Graeber & George Nasr
Photographers — Mike Friend, Roger Hsieh,
Nick Rodnicki & Eddy Wylie
Page Designers — News: Kristin DeLuca & Kristen
DeRocha; Sports: Robin Greathouse; Ag
gielife: Stew Milne
Copy Editors - Rob Clark & Sterling Hayman
Graphic Artists — Toon Boonyavanich & Melissa
Oldham
Strip Cartoonists - Valerie Myers & Quatro
Oakley
Office Staff - Office Manager: Julie Thomas;
Clerks: Wendy Crockett & Heather Harris
News: The Battalion news department is managed
by students at Texas A&M University in the
Division of Student Publications, a unit of
the Department of Journalism.
News offices are in 01 3 Reed McDonald Building.
Newsroom hours:
Sunday, 2 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Monday — Thursday, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Friday 1 0 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Newsroom phone: 845-3313; Fax: 845-2647
E-mail: Batt@tamvml.tamu.edu
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