II inside
I Pit Stop: A visit to the International
Car Association's 10th Annual
International Championship
Autorama , . p.7
Paper plates: What is coming to the
Nebraska Union?. . . , : . ...... . . . . . . , p.2
The stars are the limit: Noontime
talks at Mueller Planetarium p.9
1 1
mm J
monday, february 23, 1976 vol. 09 no. 85 lincoln, nebraska
i i .1
r-YsT-.. in i ti
yJlrvLG,LDdIoora,D,
oho mm)?
By Barbara Lutz
A Harper Hall resident is seeking $25 in damages be
cause his tropical fish and plants died as the result of what
he called excessive heat in his residence hall room during
Thanksgiving vacation last semester.
Ken Donner, a sophomore engineering' major from
Wisner, said when he returned to school Nov. 30, the
temperature in his room was 114 degrees. Other students'
property also sustained damage, he said, Records were
warped, candles were melted and food was spoiled, he
added.
Richard Armstrong, director of housing, said, '7 can
not tell you the cause, but it appears there was an exces
sive amount of heat over the Thanksgiving holiday." He
said he does not know why but there is "no question that
it did happen."
Physical Plant 'Director Harley Schrader said, "We
don't know what happened." Normally, during vacations,
residence hall temperatures are "reduced to conserve
energy," he said.
Donner said students are told, to unplug everything dur
ing vacation except aauariums and refrigerators and turn
off lights and fans in their heat vents. "They are supposed
to regulate the heat at the power plant," he said.
A lot of red tape
... Donner said he talked to his floor's student assistant,
the Harper Hall resident director and the Harper-Schramm-Smith
complex director about the heat damages, with no
results. He said he then was referred to the UNL Physical
. Plant,' maintenance officer housing office andstudcritT
legal service lawyer David Rasmussen. He "ran into a lot of
red tape," Donner said.
Rasmussen said he told Donner to make an itemized
list of his losses and send themto Ray Loudon, director
of personnel and the university's liaison with AEtna In
surance Co., which insures UNL buildings. -
Approximately $150 damage occurred in the fifth
r: ; j
floor of Harper Hall, which "times nine floors is $1,350
in losses," Donner said. -.
A claim representative for AEtna, P.E. Pettinger,
visited Harper Hall last semester to "investigate" the
claims, Donner said.'
Donner said it bothers him that there are "two differ
ent stories" in the insurance investigation of the incident.
-"Two stories"
Jie said one "story" was the Feb. 13 notice from
Pettinger to fifth floor residents denying their claims. He
said the statement read "(We) failed to establish that your
losses were produced by factors that would give rise to
liability on the part of the University of Nebraska.. . . (We)
"advise you that we have no alternative but to respectfully
deny your claims." ,
t
But Donner said Pettinger told Rasmussen that the in
surance t policy does not cover plants and aquariums.
Armstrong said Donner told him that Harper residents
had received notice from the insurance company, but the
housing office has not received any written conclusion yet
from AEtna. ...
Armstrong said Loudon would notify him on the
settlement of the claims, and nothing could be done until
then.
Loudon was unavailable for comment. ' '
Question of liability
Rasmussen said Donner's legal position is that "the
University is liable due to negligence of the university
employes which caused him (Donner) financial loss and he
seeks reimbursement." - x
UNL's legal position is that "they are not liable and
they are not responsible for (Donner's) losses," he said.
. v Rasmussen said he cannot represent students in court,
but can refer them to other agencies and advise them of
their rights. s,
"Once Donner has been turned down by the insurers,
the next step is to file a claim with the State Claims
Board," Rasmussen said. The claims board processes the
claim and either sends it to the municipal small claims
court or denies it.
If Donner's claims are denied, Rasmussen said, he can
file suit in Lancaster County Court.
. -
rY1"
I
' Vf ' '
t."- .
A P K - o ' '
- 1
Nl ' I
mm
1 .. i
i 1 at, few B
i
A hts wiatcr siitm tffonkd six UNL tin ,
" dcats the ep?cftanfty to show off their
cKZ'dvs bleats. The rcidlt f their effort it
Bruce t!ie Snowpcnon, who fa rcsMlsj it '
l& md E itreets, tt k&st uaQ warmef'
wtsther errives. Brace's "psrfists" ere from
left ta fit;Cft2 Kosiser, iop&snore
culteare ctciomics mcr titxn fiJssy,
Apt! Dissjtltl, a lislo cleaetaiy tdaca
. tifi-a ejg &osa llit&e$$$ J. Si Rokft-'"
- tm, Cetirke jjr!cr nijailij is ec2s
2 Til lUi:";r, 8 TrscLtrV CC'c
, uaScr frcai Or? Feb Mcmw, Ihcila
-rdm n-j?r2 h hirsn ni Asa .
...
UNO center pending conditions
By Dick Piersol
The proposed University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) .
downtown educational center came a step closer to realiy
last week when Gov. J. James Exon told its supporters
that he would not oppose it if certain conditions are met.
The governor did not say he would support or endorse
a new construction plan of a combined state office build
ing and UNO educational center, which also will have
space reserved for Metro Technical Community College,
according to Norman Otto, Exon's administrative assist
ant. Plans for such a building, which would encompass two
blocks in downtown Omaha, will depend on a com
promise on the state's share of money to build it.
Conditions
t?. J J. . 1
Stan Matzke, director of the State Department of Admini
strative Services
One condition is that the state's share of the building
should not exceed $9 million. The Nebraska Legislature in
1974 appropriated $8 million for an Omaha state office
building.
Sen. Glenn Goodrich of Omaha introduced LB838
this session, wLIeh would appropriate! $5 million more for
the downtown center. To comply with Exon's conditions,
that bill would have to be reworked to reduce the state's
share to $1 million plus the $S million previously
provided.
Omaha World-Herald publisher Peter Kicwit has
pledged to contribute $2.5 million to the project, to be
mat died by other Omaha businesses.
The $9 million wovil be used to make lease payments
to the city of Omaha. For actual construction, Omaha
would have to issud revenue bonds, which would be
retired over a decs-ia .. by the state's fca.se payments,
Matzke said.
The buIIJing would be in the state's came, not UNO's
as originally pi arm!, he BaU. t
If the iigkbtura screes to those conations, Exoa said
ha would isot oppose the bin.
. 123JC3q.ft.forUNO
- Space tllotmcrtts wowU U 12000 sq. ft., for UNO,
65, GG0 square feet for state cfric y.ss .-J tloixt 5JEXX)
for listtQ Tech, Matzke said, lias state cow maiatalcs
abovl sq. ft. cf cfHcea tt vrbta O.Tiia location.
The fate of ihe proposed VtiQ Iksllh, I'ltsl Owes-
tion and Recreation Bidg. (HPER), for which construction
costs are provided in LB83S, is less certain because Exon
vetoed its construction last session. It has been given
second priority for construction by NU administrators
and the downtown Omaha campus center is sixth in
priority.
The downtown educational center and HPER are of
equal importance to Omaha senators, Omaha Sen. John
Cavana ugh said.
The University has made a special plea to members of
the Appropriations Committee to retain provisions for its
construction in LB838, said NU President D.B. Varner.
LB838 provides $2 million of $6.7 million total construc
tion costs for HPER.
UNO, government
may be changed
By Kim Shepherd
The University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) Student
Senate may be rbolished and replaced by a board of
directors, said Mike O'Connor, UNO student senator.
In a plan to be submitted this week by Clint Bellows,
UNO Student government president and student regent,
the Senate would give way to a "county board" type of
government to be headed by the UNO student regent, he
said. Since there no longer would be a need for a presi
dent, UNO students would be voting for a board chair
man, he said.
Bellows said' he philosophical beSeves'the student
government has an administrative, not a legislative, duty.
The board concept wouU fill this need , lie aJdid.
. Eelbws will present the pLn to the Senate Wede.
day, Ha said several studsai senators have been hdptoj;
him develop the idea of the board fovemmcat.
The UNO Student Senate currently has 32 tea!, two
of which are vacant, 0Conner said. The plan woutl re-
duce the number cf student representatives to between 10
tai 15, ha sail.
S?u!at government elections at UNO wEl be l!afi 24
throfh25. '('.''. ' . ' '.' -
