Western Front - 2003 April 15

              Musical memories
Local conductor recounts the
source of his inspiration
See Story, Page 8.
Walking on snow
Western students choose a
different form of transportation.
See Story, Page 12.
TUESDAY, April 15, 2003
Western Washington University Volume 125 Issue 4 Bellingham, Washington
Local businesses feel impact
of slumping wartime economy
By Ben Arnold
THE WESTERN FRONT
Bellingham's economy is
doing fairly well in the face of
war, but some businesses are
still feeling the effects of the
slowed economy, said Mike
Brennan, the president of the
B e l l i n g h a m / W h a t c om
Chamber of Commerce and
Industry.
With increased border secu­rity,
the number of Canadians
who would normally come
across and contribute to
Whatcom County's economy
has dropped, Brennan said.
"(Security) has kept our bor­der
traffic absolutely flat," he
said.
In the past, Canadian con­sumers
have not had a large
impact on the Bellingham and
Whatcom County economy, but
now they do, he said.
When security levels are
heightened, retailers see an
immediate drop in spending,
he said.
"What we heard a lot of
overall, during the week the
war started, was that people
were spending a lot more time
at home watching the news,"
said Bob Buchanan, senior
Keith Boiling/The Western Front
Sale signs in the Wilson Leather store in Bellis Fair Mall overshadow brand repre­sentative
Christa Klingberg, right, and Assistant Manager Nicole Nathan, left.
Wilson Leather has felt the effects of a slowed economy, cutting its monthly prof­its
by tens of thousands of dollars.
general manager for General
Growth Properties Inc., which
owns Bellis Fair Mall.
In spite of this, Bellingham
retail has been doing well, and
residents have kept their
money in the city, spending
locally, Brennan said.
Residents in the Puget
Sound area have also helped
Bellingham's economy grow.
Brennan said travelers from
Seattle and south Puget
Sound, who would normally
continue to Canada, are not
doing so because of increased
security at the border.
Instead, they stop in
Bellingham, replacing the
added cash flow that
See SPENDING, Page 4
Students, fraternity offer help with tax returns
Volunteers give seniors tax assistance
By Meiena Eaton
THE WESTERN FRONT
Bellingham residents who
were befuddled by their tax
returns this year found help in
Western students and commu­nity
members who worked
together to help them get their
returns in on time.
Members of Western's chap­ter
of Beta Alpha Psi, the
national accounting fraterni­ty,
and the Accounting Society
have been volunteering as tax
counselors for the American
Association of Retired
Persons' Tax-Aide program
since January.
"Tax-Aide focuses on helping
seniors and people of moderate
to low incomes file simple tax
returns ... such as the 1040A
and 1040EZ," District
Coordinator Joe McClain said.
The program is entirely vol­unteer
based. Before becoming
a tax counselor, volunteers
were required to complete a
tax return training course and
pass a test. After completing
the training, the tax coun­selors
began working in early
February at locations includ­ing
the Viking Union and the
Bellingham Public Library.
Sixty percent of the pro­gram's
tax counselors in
Whatcom Country are not stu­dents,
but they did volunteer
with students at the
Bellingham library. Only stu­dent
tax counselors staffed the
table in the VU lobby.
Western senior Sheila Brosy,
a tax counselor who worked in
the VU, said Tax-Aide definite­ly
needs student volunteers
because it is a program that
benefits them.
"Tax-Aide helps students
because it answers their ques­tions,
and I think they're
scared of the IRS and taxes,
but when they see other stu­dents
doing them, it helps,"
Brosy said.
Western senior Eang Chhee,
former vice president of Beta
See TAXES, Page 4
Conference aims to end violence
By Katie Grimes
THE WESTERN FRONT
Individuals from universities
throughout the nation
exchanged hugs and hand­shakes
last Saturday at the
Viking Union to take part in the
first Men Stopping Violence con­ference,
titled "A Call to Action"
sponsored by Western Men
Against Violence.
The aim of participants was to
gather as a group and begin to
build a network of WMAV advo­cates
throughout the country as
well as continue talks about the
role men play in ending violence,
WMAV Coordinator Brian Pahl
said.
"I am using this conference as
a way to continue exploring the
male identity and discuss ways
to help stop violence against
women," said Charlie Varland,
Western senior and MAV mem­ber.
Staff and students from more
than nine universities traveled
to Western to participate in the
event. Ew Quimbaya-Winship,
MAV program coordinator from
the Rochester Institute of.
Technology, planned to use the
conference as a way to improve
his MAV program in Rochester.
"This conference is a way to
talk with other individuals
about their successes and chal­lenges
within the program,"
Quimbaya-Winship said. "I'm
looking to steal some ideas."
MAV programs currently func-tion
at universities around the
See CONFERENCE, Page 3
On-campus
housing rates
will increase
By Amanda Peckham
THE WESTERN FRONT
Students who plan on living in any of
the dorms next fall should expect an
increase in room and board costs.
Although room and board charges usual­ly
increase 4.17 percent — according to a
10-year average-per year, Willy Hart, asso­ciate
director of university residences, said
room and board costs will increase by 5.25
percent next year.
The average student living on campus
will now pay an additional $297 per year,
except for Birnam Wood residents who will
pay an additional $7 per month, according
to an executive summary written for the
board of trustees.
An increase in revenues will pay for a
project that began last summer to renovate
the residence halls around campus. This
project will cost $84 million and will be fin­ished
by 2019, Hart said.
"All expenses for residence halls are
paid from the room and board rates,"
Hart said.
This summer will mark the end of a
renovation of the last two-thirds of
Highland Hall, said Linda P. Beckman,
division director of budget and adminis­tration
for student affairs. The first one-third
of the Highland Hall renovation
began last summer. The total cost is $3.4
million, Hart said.
Birnam Wood will be the next housing
facility renovated with $8.4 million going
toward any asbestos cleanup needed dur­ing
the renovation, Ethernet hookup,
sprinklers and new furniture, Hart said.
Another $20 million will eventually go
toward putting sprinklers in all of the
residence halls.
Another cause of the increase in rates
is Whatcom County's 14 percent natural
gas and 6 percent water cost raise as well
as an increase in operating costs at the
dining centers.
Hart said it is important to renovate
the residence halls as more students
arrive every year.
See HOUSING, Page 3
Katie Grimes/The
Western Front
Western Men
Against Violence
Coordinator Brian
Pahl and members
of the program
take a break
between work­shops
to socialize
and ask questions
of presenter
Fabiano, center,
Prevention and
Wellness Services
coordinator.
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