Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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INSIDE ] VIEWPOINTS gpgpgg— jpaHU Trespassing turns into exploration Phil Watson describes the thrill found in urban exploration. PAGE 6 THE MIX _ Crocodile Hunter hits the big screen Tug Baker reviews Steve Erwin’s adventures “down under’’. PAGE 7 Gamecocks strike gold in Jamaica USC students bring home five gold medals in relays. PAGE 10 INDEX Comics9 Crossword 9 Classifieds 12 Horoscopes 9 Letters to the Editor 6 Online Poll_ 6 Quote of the Day_ 7 USC Police Report 3 Greek life ready in fall BY BEN BRYAN THE GAMECOCK The Greek Village will open its doors for the 2002 2003 school year with four Greek organizations moving to the new location off of Blossom Street. The fraternities of Kappa Alpha, Sigma Alpha Epsilon, Alpha Tau Omega, and the sorority of Zeta Tau Alpha will be the first four groups to move into the village. Although only four of the 15 lots will be in use this com ing year, plans are already in the works for the entire Greek Village. “All 15 lots have already been assigned,” said Mason L. Reuter, coordi nator of Greek Life. The re maining 11 lots should be completed and ready for move-in by next fall. However, several groups remain on a waiting list. "More groups applied than there were lots," Reuter said. "The lots were given on a first-come, first-serve basis... they had to put together a packet of information and submit it to Greek Housing." In order to gain access to the Greek Village, each organi zation had to provide infor mation including their hous ing corporation, a chapter re port and a drawing of the proposed house to be built. In addition to the aesthetic appeal of the village, Reuter said that the attention that the new housing will bring to fraternities and sororities at USC should potentially bring in more pledges in future rushes. "I think the greatest ♦ GREEK, SEE PAGE 2 PHOTO BY ROBERT GRUEN/THE GAMECOCK Construction equipment rests in front of the Sigma Alpha Epsilon house, which is located within the Greek Village off Blossom Street. Russell House undergoes facelift BY CHRIS FOY THE GAMECOCK When students arrive at the university in less than a month, returning students aren’t expected to see a lot of change in the Russell House - yet. Over the next two years, however, students will wit ness a nearly complete reno vation of their student union. By August 17, phase one of the Russell House Renovation Project is expected to be com plete. This phase involves moving the mailboxes down stairs to the Carolina Mall. Phase two, which will en tail wrapping up the new mailbox area as well as the new location for the game room, will begin after fall semester begins. Moving the mailboxes downstairs is part of the Russell House's new layout, which will feature not only the mail station downstairs, but also a "Quick Copy" area, a print shop, and possibly a "Mailboxes Etc." Helen Zeigler, DSC direc tor of Business Affairs, said that bringing all of these ser vices together will improve postal services for students. "Essentially, this is de signed to bring about a much better organized and central ized Russell House post office operation," Zeigler said. “I think everyone agrees this building is a maze, and that’s what we’re trying to rectify.” JOHN OGLE ASSISTANT DIRECTOR FOR OPERATIONS The redesign for the Russell House is meant not only to give the building a newer look, but also to make the services more efficient. With the removal of the mail boxes this fall, the first floor lobby will begin its transfor mation into a food court. Over the next couple of months Carolina Styles, as well as the Student Government offices, will be cleared out to make the first floor lobby exclusively food services. In addition, there are plans to increase seating in the Grand Market Place. John Ogle, Assistant Director for Operations in the Russell House, noted that construction project will be ongoing. "There will be visible con struction going on the first floor lobby in the first semester,” Ogle said. "But when it’s done, it will leave our students with more food options, more attractive dining establishments and make the builder brighter with more natural light." Other redesign plans call for no dining facilities in the basement because emphasis will be on student services. In addition to the mail station, the ID station along with the general store will remain, ♦ FACELIFT, SEE PAGE 2