U fraternities, sororities and their neighbors hash things out monthly to try to keep the peace, but not everyone thinks it helps.
Most greek houses are located on 100 South between University and Wolcott Street, though a few-the Beta Theta Pi, Sigma Nu and Kappa Kappa Gamma houses-are a little farther north on Wolcott Street.
The juxtaposition of the greeks and their neighbors-mostly retired people and young families-causes problems. The neighbors are often troubled by greeks’ late-night noise, drinking, litter and parking problems.
Detective Matt Evans of the Salt Lake Police Department said, “We generally just get complaints about drunk people.”
He said that he thought the biggest problem was a lack of education on local laws because many of the greeks are from other parts of the country.
The Greek Row Neighborhood Relations Committee, which has existed in some form since the 1980s, is meant to open lines of communication between the greek houses and their neighbors, particularly with police. The current version of the committee was formed in 2001.
The committee is supposed to include two neighbors, two police officers from the SLPD and one from the U Police Department, two U officials, two greek students and a City Council member.
Lori McDonald, assistant dean of students and greek council adviser, said, “Basically, we’re trying to accomplish building a group of students and neighbors to talk about what’s going on.”
McDonald said the committee strengthens trust and communication among neighbors, greeks and the U and lets neighbors know whom they need to call if they have a problem.
But Beverly Nelson, who lives near two fraternities, said only two or three of her neighbors know about the monthly meetings, and that the committee is not solving neighborhood problems.
“The problem with the committee is the U picks the committee,” she said. “I think if they’re going to pick members, they need to change them and make sure they have representatives that are (both) pro-fraternity and those who are having problems with the fraternities.”
Nelson said she has had many problems with fraternities (though not sororities) in the five years she’s lived in the neighborhood, including one incident in which her grandson was having a seizure and she was unable to get out of her driveway because it was blocked by a fraternity partygoer’s car.
“They just don’t realize that something that seems so insignificant can have considerable repercussions,” she said.
Nelson had another car in the back alleyway and was able to get her grandson to the hospital, but was shaken.
“I wrote multiple letters to everybody (at the U, mayor’s office and police department) because I was just so angry.”
Nelson said her feelings about the fraternities have improved greatly since the Kappa Sigma house closed down, but the issues that remain-mainly parking problems and drunken driving-are not improving.
Tom and Beth Arnett, who also live near two fraternities, said they, too, felt uninformed about the committee.
“We’ve never been invited,” said Tom Arnett. “We’ve never had any contact with the greeks. I called the greek coordinator (Lori McDonald) and left a message with her assistant. She never got back to me.”
Beth Arnett said, “My biggest problem is the noise and people wandering in my backyard when they’re obviously inebriated and urinating in the alleyway.”
The Arnetts said they would like to have better communication with the greeks to discuss these issues.
“Our only choice right now is the police,” Beth Arnett said, “And that seems so drastic to do that to your neighbors.”
The two neighborhood representatives in the committee, Noel De Nevers and Lee Hollaar, are both U professors. Nelson said she wished other, non-U-affiliated neighbors were included.
“The U has stacked this thing,” she said. “If you’ve got the U choosing the people, they’re going to pick the ones who will do what they (the U) want. They’re not going to pick the most vocal neighbors.”
Noel de Nevers, professor emeritus of chemical engineering, and Lee Hollaar, professor of computer science, said the neighbors need to organize if they want better representation.
“If a neighbor brought information, I’d take it to the meeting,” Hollaar said.
De Nevers and Hollaar agreed with the neighbors that parking is a big problem. Hollaar said he’s suggested opening up parking on 100 South or on campus.
“There are a lot of reasons why the bureaucracy of the U and the bureaucracy of the city can say ‘no,'” he said.
De Nevers said he also thought nearby on-campus parking would be helpful.
“I would love to see a new parking structure, but I just don’t think it’s going to happen.”
De Nevers said that over the years, committee members have also discussed moving the greek houses to a location on campus.
In a statement he wrote last year, de Nevers said, “If we’re starting with a clean sheet of paper, we would probably all prefer that there was a fraternity-sorority park somewhere on the U campus.”
De Nevers said there was a plan to move the greeks’ houses on campus in 1969, but it fell through because of financial problems.
Eric Jergensen, City Council member for District 3, where the greek houses are located, said, “I think it might be better to have the fraternity and sorority houses on campus, but that isn’t what it is.”
Jergensen said the committee tries more to discuss solutions for current problems.
He also said he was planning a newsletter to distribute to neighbors in November.
McDonald said, “It’s harder because they’re not organized and cohesive as a group.”
She said the neighbors discussed a newsletter in 2001, but never moved on it.
Panhellenic Council President Nancy Nazarinia said, “I think that (the committee) is always going to be a work in progress.”
