Politics & Government

UMW Keeps Open Door Policy With Local Residents

The night after a successful and well-attended community meeting that aimed to bridge the chasm between college students and local residents, city officials, elected leaders, local residents and college officials met again for a "Town and Gown" session.

University of Mary Washington officials continued engaging local residents during a meeting yesterday that followed a well-attended session the night before aimed at repairing the school's image with local communities.

The meeting is called "Town and Gown." The meetings have taken on an important role because of the increase in the number of complaints about students. A total of 19 people attended the meeting at Jepsom Alumni Center. Complaints run the gamut, from littering and noise to drinking and parking. of the group, and this was its first meeting.

Doug Searcy, UMW's vice president of student affairs, said that Wednesday's meeting that the Student Government Association organized with local residents was a step in the right direction.

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"I don't believe it solves our problems, but it certainly opens the door," he said.

Searcy said that he plans to attend three upcoming homeowners association meetings with Fredericksburg Police Chief David Nye to listen to concerns any residents might have and to keep the communication flowing. Searcy said that he met with Alcohol Beverage Control officials recently and they told him that they spent three weekends in a row in the city in the fall.

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"They gave us a thumbs up to some of the other communities they have visited," Searcy said. He has met with a lot of students over the past few weeks and Searcy said he tells them that the goal is to achieve a balance so that one particular side isn't dominating the conversation and progress.

College Heights Civic Association President Meredith Beckett said an ABC officer told her that one concern is that once a student who is charged goes to court on a first offense, the judge often dismisses the case. A . Beckett wondered if City Council could add to the ordinance that community service be a mandatory punishment for first-offenders, but it would be unlikely city officials said.

"She said that's one level that needs to be addressed," Beckett said.

Fredericksburg Police spokeswoman Natatia Bledsoe said the technical term for what judges do with the cases is called a "deferred disposition." Bledsoe notifies the university any time a college student is charged with a crime.

"We don't have any control over what the judge decides to do," she said.

Parking is another source of complaints. The university has 1,924 spaces for a population of 4,802, which a UMW official said is on par, even better, than the national benchmark. Mathews asked if the top of the parking deck has to have that many spaces reserved for visitors because he notices a lot of them are empty.

Police Chief Nye provided a police report that showed there has been a slight increase in complaints associated with college students since August 2011. Most of the cases are for noise and underage possession of alcohol. From Aug. 1 to Dec. 31, 2011, there were five cases of underage possession of alcohol and the number climbed to 14 from just Jan. 1 to Feb. 20 of 2012. There were 12 noise complaints from Aug. 1-Dec. 31, 2011, and there have already been nine since Jan. 1.

Mark Whitley, the city's assistant city manager, said there has been more of an emphasis on dealing with repeat offenders of the noise and nuisance ordinance, that includes now contacting the landlords of the homes. The city has contacted six landlords so far and the list is reviewed every two weeks. This new program has resulted in one notice of eviction for the residents of 1503 Stafford Avenue that has violated the city's ordinance twice in less than six months for loud parties.

City Councilwoman Kerry Devine said she had heard that the college students who live in the house plan to throw one last party.

"Well, we will be keeping a check," on the house, Nye warned.

Nye also said that to address students' concerns about motorists speeding on William Street approaching the College Avenue crosswalk, he has placed a speed trailer near the intersection. The trailer signals the speed of any car approaching the radar and acts as a deterent.

The group's next meeting is at 3:30 p.m. April 19.

Correction: The Town and Gown meetings have gone on for several years and an earlier version of this story was incorrect.


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