University of South Carolina Libraries
viewpoi] P.E. Cer By BETH HILL Editorial Page Editor The Solomon Blatt Physical Education Center remained open during the weekend of Jan. 21-23 when the rest of the campus buildings were closed due to the energy crisis. Hal Brunton, vice president for operations, said the I I . GAME [ Msrgurite Ryan Mickey T Graduate Assistant Mitch Sherwood Kurt O Sports Editor Copy De 1 Sally Wilson Mark All j Asst. Sports Editor Photograp Ronnie Hutchins Bob I Asst. Sports Editor Advertising | THE GAMECOCK welcomes Ittttfl from Its i ?ub|ect and a maximum of MO words. They i ? Pseudonyms or other aliases will not (w use circumstance* warrant. To assist us in verl< your mailinv address and a telephone numb* i das* standing and maior, alto. Wa reserve th to maet owr space limitations. Address: Ca L. USC, Columbia, $. C. mo?. 1 V> />/?{<'V'' nts iterl, Li physical education building "was considered part of university housing" that weekend and "we closed all academic buildings and left only housing open." He said he and .lamps f! fnmnholl uino president of student affairs, conferred on the problem and decided to leave the facility open since it was believed that several thousand students The iceman ( bock rlmerehl Mark J. Lundsren ? News Editor rdner Edith McNeil sk Chief Asst. News Editor ftxfinder 3eth Hill +>y Editor Editorial Page Editor <lng Chuck Cromer ) Manager Entertainment Editor ' tiers. Letters should be limited to a single roust be signed with th? writer's true nam*, d, but the writer's nam* will h? withheld if lying the identity of writers, please Include r where you can be reached. Pleas* Include ? right to edit all letters, not for content, but mpus Opinion, The Gamecock, Drawer A, ibrary 0 would remain on campus that weekend. Campbell said, "We felt we should have some facilities open for the students for exercise since so many were staying in housing. We chose it over the Russell House since Russell House has three different types of heating systems, and so it was more efficient to keep the p.e. center open." ;ometh , a r . < Open gym To the Editor: I am told by certain friends that tl 23, despite the closing of university fuel shortage. I can think nf nn rpnsAn ?hn? mnn the Blatt complex while other phys House) were forced to shut dowi framework, to consider a gym to ha' than a purely educational building James Wharton All the facilities in the center were available for use by students on a limited schedule of hours. The academic offices were closed on Friday and as usual throughout the weekend. Ed Shelley, manager of energy and systems planning, said, "The heat was off in the space (the physical education center)." Shelley said the building tends to overheat anyway from its lights and the body heat of the people using the facility and that air conditioning has to be left on year round in parts of the building. "The design of the buildingwindowless-causes it to hold its heat more than other buildings," Brunton said. "It unjustified le p.e. center remained open Jan. 21facilities due to the current serious M 4: ? * >u jiuiu; me uuiiimueu operation of ical plants (the library, the Russell i. It is ludicrous, in a university ve higher priority in crisis situations f takes less heat to sustain the pool than to turn it down (the heat) and brine it back ud." The physical education center shouldn't have been open for students' use when the rest of the university's buildings "weren't operating. Even though the heat in the building wasn't turned on and so wasn't negating the university's efforts to conserve energy that weekend, as a matter of principle the building should have been closed since the others were closed. The library is also a virtually windowless building that retains its heat similarly to the physical education building. Why wasn't it also left open for students' use? The underground floors of the library, levels one through four, are not heated. The only heat on those levels is generated from body heat and that generated from tne ceiling lights. So the library could have been left open as inexpensively as the physical education center and would have benefited many more students than the operation of the physical education building. Certainly there were many students who needed to use the library that weekend and were impeded in their studies by its closing. The students who did enjoy the facilities of the physical education center on Jan. 21-23 were happy that the building was open so that they could amuse themselves, by swimming, playing racquctball or watching the women's gymnastics competition. That's fine ? many persons, including myself, enjoy going to the physical education center daily to take advantage of its terrific facilities. Even more persons would have used the facility if it had been announced that the building would be open during the weekend "recess." But the point is, the amusement of some students, no matter how many, and the design of the building should not be cited as excuses for opening one building when all other buildings on campus were closed. Brunton said, "Hindsight is great. Probably in hindsight, we would have left the library open." He said it would be recommended in anv future university holidays due to energy shortages that the library be left open for students' use. "We're learning as we're going," he said. Hindsight is wonderful, Mr. Brunton, but it doesn't change the fact that the closing of all the academic buildings except the physical education center and particularly the closing of the library was an unjust and unwise decision.