The release of the steering committee report last week raised questions for Greek organizations on campus, forcing them to consider major renovations and the financial burdens that would accompany them.
The recommendations in the report, if approved, could have meaningful implications for privately owned Greek houses since the report says new standards should be set for "internal and external cosmetic features, furnishings and grounds, as well as structural, utility and safety features."
According to Coed Fraternity Sorority Council President Eric Etu '01, the renovations could be very costly, depending on the house and its status. He said things like removing permanent bars and taps could be done by brothers.
"Once you start talking about renovating basement into a study space or exercise room, that would need to be done by an outside source," he said.
He also said renovations dealing with electrical wiring, plumbing, roofs and house foundations -- all of which are needed by some Greek houses on campus -- could be very costly.
Although none of the house presidents contacted by The Dartmouth said they had an exact estimate yet for the renovations their houses could need, Etu said, "I would be surprised if some of these houses got away with renovation costs less than a six-figure number."
This financial burden is most worrisome for the privately-owned Greek houses.
According to Director of Residential Operations Woody Eckels, the College would pay for any renovations to college-owned facilities.
All of the sororities are college-owned, with the exception of Alpha Xi Delta, which is owned by the Beta Corporation. However, there are only two college-owned fraternities -- Alpha Chi Alpha and Chi Heorot.
The improvements to physical plants for these privately-owned facilities is even more distressing to many fraternity presidents because of the report's other proposals -- that the system should not be a residential one and that the dean of the College has the right to arbitrarily dismantle the Greek system if he thinks at any time that "system-wide progress achieved was below expectations."
According to President of Kappa Kappa Kappa fraternity Peter Hainley '01, his house was in the process of making fundraising plans when the steering committee report came out, because members had anticipated the renovation recommendations.
He said Tri-Kap currently has plans to raise $200,000, mostly from fundraising targeted at alumni, but he does not know if that goal is attainable.
He said a large sum of money would be necessary, though, because the house needs a lot of renovations to bring it up to the proposed standards.
President of Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity Isaac Bernicker '01 said he thought the new standards were going in the right direction because according to him, his house does need rehabilitation. However, he raised the same concern as the other presidents who talked to The Dartmouth: that alumni would be hesitant to donate money to a fraternity if it were not going to exist five or 10 years down the road.
"I don't know that I would be willing to donate to a cause that could be futile or in vain," he said.
Gamma Delta Chi fraternity President Brendan Endicott '02 put it more bluntly. "It seems like the administration is trying to hold us to the standards of a dormitory, but they're making us pay for all of the renovations," he said. "It's like the administration is slowly killing off the Greek system by making houses go bankrupt."
Etu said the CFS system is drafting a list of its own recommendations in response to the steering committee report, which it hopes to finish a few weeks before the end of Winter term and give to the new task force.
He said one of the key points of the CFS system's report will be to ask the College for guarantees that the Greek system will not be arbitrarily dismantled after the houses have raised and spent money to renovate their physical plants and other features.
"The CFSC as a whole has decided that we need some sort of assurance," he said. "That assurance has to be in place before the fundraising can happen. Fundraising won't be possible if possible donors and lenders don't have some assurance that their money is going to be spent on something that will be here in five years."
Although Greek leaders are considering potential fundraising tactics, they are not generally making concrete plans until the Trustees release their final decision during Spring term.
On the College side of the renovation-spectrum, Eckels said plans will be continued as scheduled on all building projects, including the renovation of the Ripley, Woodward and Smith cluster this coming summer, unless specifically directed otherwise.
"All current renovation projects are funded through student rent," he said, although it is a system which might not last with the increased recommended constructions. "I'm doubtful if that would continue."
He said he did not have plans yet for covering the costs of any new Trustee-initiated renovations, but he said he assumed the final Trustee report would guide a fundraising process.
