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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 20, 1990)
Official says computer system led to fewer parking tickets By Thomas Clouse Staff Reporter More UNL students have been complying with parking regulations since the campus parking department installed a computer sys tem that processes tickets faster, a university parking official said. Sherryl Chamberlain, systems manager for the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Parking and Traffic Department, said the drop in tickets issued since the system was installed last spring indicates that the new Auto-Cite system “may be helping” parking compliance. The number of parking tickets dropped from about 50,000 from July 1, 1988, through Feb. 15, 1989, to 40,000 during the same time period this year. “If people weren’t complying with the sys tem, then there would be more tickets writ ten,” Chamberlain said. Officers use Auto-Cite automatic ticket writers on site. They print tickets, save the information and then plug into a computer system at the Parking and Traffic Department where the information is transferred and filed. Auto-Cite checks for previous violations on a certain license plate and will beep to notify the officer to contact the Parking and Traffic office, Chamberlain said. “Processing the tickets through the office (computer) is faster but the ticket-giving proc ess is not necessarily faster,’’ Chamberlain said. In April 1989, the department bought a Fujitsu mainframe computer, eight terminals, 11 Auto-Cites and software. Office cash regis ters were connected to the computer system. The department paid about $70,000 for the system. Before this, Chamberlain said, the depart ment had no computers and tickets were writ ten and filed manually. E-Week activities to increase visibility of engineering college From Staff Reports ___ The University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s College of Engineering & Technology is sponsoring its 78th annual E-Wcek at the Walter Scott Engineering Center this week. E-Week began Sunday and continues through Saturday. Doug Eagleton, managing editor of Nebraska Blueprint, the student engineer ing magazine, said the event is designed to generate high school students’ interest in the engineering college and to show the public some of its activities. “We want to open our college up to the citizens of Nebraska,’’ Eagleton said, “to sec what we do, why we do it: and why they should come specifically to the engineering college.” . , . , , „ Eagleton said high school and college students will be able to participate in engi neering competitions such as the “egg drop." The egg drop requires the student to build a box to prevent an egg dropped from 56 feet from breaking. . „ „ ,, The “Tower of Power in Half an Hour will challenge students to build the highest tower out of newspaper and tape. The tower must have a one-foot base. Eagleton said the competitions demon strate students’ abilities to combine light ness and strength in their designs. Engineering projects from the various departments of the college also will be dis played. About 150 students usually take part in E-Wcek, Eagleton said. NU Regents approve plan for UNO fine arts building despite design concerns From Staff Reports The NU Board of Regents approved plans for an SI 1.5 million fine arts building for the University of Ne braska at Omaha on Saturday. Regents Don Frickc of Lincoln and Robert Allen of Haslingsopposcd the building, which will include an experimental theater with classrooms, labs, an art gallery' and 250 scats. “There is no question that UNO needs a building,” Allen said. “But I’m wondering if this is a proper use of the money.” The outside walls of the building will be curved and covered with red brick. Allen questioned the “wiggle wall’’design. “It’s very fancy for a student, ’ ’ he said. Because there arc only about 200 theater and art students at UNO, Al len and Fricke wondered whether the money was being allocated properly. The cost of $118 per square foot for the building is loo high, they said. But UNO administrators and archi tects said the building will be used by about 16,000 students. Neil Morgensen, assistant vice chancellor and facilities director at UNO, said the building will add 12,300 square feet to the campus. Once the dramatic arts department, art department, university theater and studio theater can be moved to the new building, the English department can be moved out of the College of Business Administration building and into the Arts and Sciences Hall. “The building will help solve spatial shortages,” Morgensen said. The building is expected to be completed June 1, 1992. fiiTbri^Li-_—»— --— Rural environmental values topic of seminar Attitudes of rural residents toward the preservation of natural habitats will be the topic of the Center for Great Plains Studies seminar Wednesday. The seminar, at 3:30 p.m. at St. Mark’s on the Campus, 13th and R streets, will include speeches by Helen Moore, associate professor of sociology, and Allen Williams, JrM professor of sociology. Moore and Williams have sur veyed Nebraskans about the im portance of preserving natural wild life habitats and outdoor recreation areas compared to the need for increasing irrigation, draining wetlands for agricultural expan sion and using public lands for grazing. Public Sector Career Day planned for 1 hursday Representatives of federal, slate and local government and non-profit organizations will answer questions about careers in the public sector Thursday at the Nebraska Union. Public Sector Career Informa tion Day, 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., is sponsored by the University of Ncbraska-Lincoln Career Planning and Placement Center and the crimi nal justice department. Careers in non-profit and public organizations account tor onc-tnira of all employment. Jobs include accountants, financial officers, public-relations specialists, lawyers, nurses, doctors, engineers and teach ers. Parking Continued from Page 1 Board members advised Oxley to consider the objections groups will have with his proposal, but Oxley said he is confident it could work. Oxley explained that the goals of his system arc to make parking more convenient, accessible and efficient for everyone. But Blaha said the system would not be more efficient for commuters as a whole, just more equitable for the individual commuter. Oxley’s proposal would not solve congestion problems, Blaha said, because too many commuters would compete for close spots. Blaha said parking should be spread out. He said he wants commuters to start filling unused lots. Instead of parking close, students or faculty could park in remote lots and ride shuttles to campus, Blaha said. This would ease congestion, and commuters would spend less time circling lots looking for parking stalls, he said. “We can’t confuse needs and wants,” Blaha said. Campus Recreation officials considering forming clubs to satisfy fans of fad sports By Shonny Schneider Staff Reporter In the 1970s, it was tennis. In the ’80s, it was jogging. Maybe the fad sport of the ’90s will be juggling, or maybe even flying. Linda Bcacom, club sportscoordi nator for the Office of Campus Rec reation, said students have approached her about starting clubs for both sports at the University of Ncbraska-Lin coln. So far, she said, interest in the sports hasn’t been strong enough lor them to become official university clubs, but the requests did catch her eye. “I was a little surprised by it,” Beacorn said. “Especially the flying club.” But she said a flying club isn’t realistic because of the cost of air planes and the danger involved. “There’s no way we could help,” Bcacom said. ‘A private club would be more equipped to handle it.” Bcacom said she didn’t know if juggling competitions would be based on how long objects stayed in the air or the danger of flaming objects or knives. Club sports arc non-varsity teams that compete against teams from other schools, Bcacom said. Try-outs are not allowed .and all students may compete, she said. More traditional sports such as soccer, bowling, volleyball and crew arc offered to students as club sports, she said. Recently, a taekwondo club was formed, Bcacom said. Students cur rently arc forming clubs for racquet ball and women’s rugby, she said. At least five members arc needed to form a club sport, and they must draft a constitution. The women’s rugby team already has 13 members and practices with the men’s team, she said. Amigos Continued from Page 1 “We have a bad loitering problem at that time of night,” Covault said. “We have a lot of people that stand around without purchasing food.” When customers purchase food, their $2 charge will be refunded, he said. Loiterers are “irritating” the employees and customers of the res taurant, Covault said. About 15 people usually loiter, he said. The charge is meant as a deter rent because “we don’t like people that come in, say, to pick up girls,’ ’ he said. An employee stationed at the door explains the reason for the charge and collects the money, he said. The charge is primarily an attempt to “make it more enjoyable for the customers,” he said. Response from customers has been positive, Covault said. Aiihough Covault said he’s sure some people left when charged at the door, he also thinks loiterers were deterred. Covault said he plans to continue the door charge based on the positive response last weekend. The 1407 Q St. store is the only Amigos in Lincoln with the entry charge.