I’m posting the following article from the Flat Hat in it’s entirety. Written by senior Alex Ely, it is a thought-provoking history of how the College may be contributing to the off-campus party problem, which is at the heart of why residents do not like student housing. It strikes me that, unfortunately, Mr. Ely seems to place too much blame on the College and not enough on the students who host and/or attend these parties. He says in the third-to-last paragraph that one ought to look to the Alcohol Task Force for “a cause-and-effect analysis of why some city residents...think that students are to blame for off-campus social events.” Students are to blame. They are the ones who make the choices. Grow up, kids! You say you want to be treated as adults but you continue to place blame on the adults and institutions around you, rather than taking responsibility for your own actions. You choose to party. You choose to make noise late into the night, to leave trash around the street. Until you choose to do something different, to behave in ways that respect our homes, we residents will continue to push back.
Hear me loud and clear on this one: We residents of Williamsburg do not dislike you students. What we dislike is the noise, the mess, and the disregard for our homes. These are our homes. Most of you have never had a home. Someday you will and then you will likely understand why your behaviour at these parties bothers us so much.
The following letter about the 3-Person Rule was sent from David Kranbuehl, a local resident, to City Council and forwarded to members of the Planning Commission.
“Dear Jeanne, Bobby,Paul,Clyde and Judy,
Last night Bill Dell, Stuart Goddin, Bill Hamilton, myself , [Councilman] Clyde [Haulman] and [Councilwoman] Judy [Knudson] met for in my opinion a very effective 65 minutes. Here is my short summary of the two essential conclusions.
First, it is essential that we form a four legged chair with the College and particularly the College President/administration working with City government, residents and students in maintaining/improving the residential atmosphere in the Richmond Road/Jamestown Road neighborhoods. A key aspect of that participation is help in having respect for and help in enforcement of the city’s regulations regarding rental housing.
As a member of the Planning Commission, I will be involved in reviewing the so-called 3-Person Rule. Below is an article from The Flat Hat.
“Possible changes to the three-person rule dominated yesterday’s Williamsburg City Council meeting. After discussion and public comments, the Council unanimously voted to send the proposal to the Planning Commission for consideration.
The proposal was developed....”
Someone I’ve begun to admire greatly is mega-billionaire and mayor of New York City Michael Bloomberg. A Democrat-turned-Repuplican-turned-Independent, Bloomberg has a no-nonsense approach that I think this country needs.
I keep searching for indications of who he will endorse in the presidential race. Here’s what I’ve found.