Building Without a Plan

Aside from the twice-quarterly LGBT dance and, of course, the annual day-long rager that is the Sun God Festival, there’s usually not much to do on campus. Unlike other UC schools — and nearly every other major university — there’s no Greek row for students to stumble to on a Friday night.
So, in an attempt to solve this social quandary, A.S. Council’s Greek Housing Initiative Committee is looking to have a completely functional, up-and-running Greek row by 2016. And while it’s laudable that the committee wants to spice up the droll social life at UCSD with the best facilities possible, building a $60 million facility from the ground up isn’t the stuff of student government — especially when the UC system’s predicted to be facing a $1 billion budget gap next year.
A Greek row would, without a doubt, be a boon to campus life. UC Berkeley’s sororities and fraternities are the center of its social life and that can primarily be attributed to their Greek row that opens up Greek life to the rest of campus. Here, if you’re not a part of the Greek system, after being bombarded with flyers every Fall Quarter, you won’t likely notice much of them for the rest of the year — save those ubiquitous “Party With Pi Phi” tank tops, anyway.
But despite the benefits of a Greek row, with such fledgling plans in the pipeline, it’s impossible to wholeheartedly approve of the committee’s direction.
First, according to committee chair and Campuswide Senator Michael Raimondi, there’s no current estimate of the total cost. There’s also no estimate of how many houses, in total, a Greek row would require, since there may be new sororities in the works for next year. Without even knowing this basic fact, the budget will have to take into account the possibility of constructing an extra two houses for potential new sororities — an addition that will have a big effect on the cost shouldn’t be taken lightly. (One thing Raimondi does know: He wants Mediterranean architecture.)
Raimondi is hoping the project’s total cost will be under $60 million. If so, Chancellor Fox will have the jurisdiction to sign off on the project; if it’s not, the fate of a Greek row will be left to the mercy of the UC Board of Regents.
Another issue that seems unrealistic is Raimondi’s five-year timeline for completion. Few construction projects of this magnitude, from inception to completion, are realized in so little time; Raimondi himself admitted that the Muir and Revelle College apartments have been in the works for decades — and that’s with a much larger planning committee and much more concrete plans behind them.
In the mold of other UC campuses before it — and after it — UCSD would, ideally, have constructed a Greek row before its 50th anniversary this year. Because it hasn’t, it’s up to campus leaders like Raimondi to get the ball rolling.
It’s important to recognize Raimondi’s drive in tackling such an ambitious project; most campuswide senators  have smaller ambitions, like spearheading local environmental or diversity initiatives, to cement their legacy on council. But until his committee can provide some semblance of a response to the myriad unanswered questions, it’s difficult to call the committee’s optimistic plans anything but naïve.

Readers can contact Cheryl Hori at  [email protected].

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