After rejecting a bid from the College last month, the trustees of Beta Theta Pi fraternity have agreed to lease the vacant house at 6 Webster Avenue to the newly affiliated Alpha Xi Delta sorority.
The house has been empty since last December when the College forced members of Dartmouth's Beta chapter to vacate the house following the fraternity's derecognition.
Beta Trustee Jeff Sassorossi '75 said the lease -- which begins Jan. 1 -- was given to Alpha Xi Delta in an effort to "maintain the character of the place."
"It allows the house to be used in the same way that it has been used for 60 years," Sassorossi said. Leasing the house to the sorority will help the trustees to achieve their ultimate goal -- bringing Beta back to Dartmouth, according to Sassorossi.
"Our first real priority is to help the re-colonization of another Beta chapter," he said. "We didn't want it to turn into a facility that would not allow us to do that at some point in the future."
The College revoked recognition of Beta on Dec. 6, after they were found guilty of using alcohol in the fraternity's basement. The alcohol use violated the terms of suspension imposed on the fraternity for during last Summer term.
Beta's recognition had been suspended in July, 1996 when the fraternity accepted responsibility for members chasing and attacking a member of Sigma Nu fraternity in an incident the month before.
In the spring of this year, the Beta alumni corporation invited numerous parties, including the College, to lease the house at a price of $5,000 a month.
Dean of the College Lee Pelton said the College made the Beta corporation an offer on the house, but that offer was rejected last month.
Sassorossi said the lease given to Alpha Xi Delta -- the former Delta Pi Omega sorority -- terminates in June, 2000, which "leaves the possibility of re-colonization that fall."
Pelton said the College had not decided what they would have done with the house had their bid been accepted, but Sassorossi said the College's proposal was to use the house as a "residential facility."
Alpha Xi Delta was founded last May as Delta Pi Omega and was officially recognized by the College on Jan. 6. The sisters voted to affiliate with the national sorority Alpha Xi Delta in July.
Until recently, it appeared Alpha Xi Delta would begin its first year in the regular rush process as the only Panhellenic sorority without a physical plant.
But although the sisters will not move into the house until Jan. 1, Alpha Xi Delta will use the new house for rush during the next week -- which Alpha Xi Delta President Emily Csatari '99 said will help them to attract new members.
"When we initially formed we were all really excited to leave an impression on Dartmouth but we recognized that we really needed a house to be competitive with the other sororities and to offer the same things that they offer," Csatari said. "It's a huge victory."
Csatari said the sorority "will be actively pursuing other physical plant possibilities for when our lease terminates."
Sassorossi said extensive renovations will be made to the house before Alpha Xi Delta's lease begins. The renovations will include painting, replacing windows, insulating the house and repairing damage caused by Beta brothers last December.
Former Beta brothers are paying the trustees thousands of dollars in restitutions for the damage they caused to the house after learning of the College's decision to derecognize the fraternity.
