Sorority Row at North Texas
 

From the Denton Record Chronicle:

UNT OKs ‘sorority row’
07/22/2003

By Matthew Zabel / Staff Writer

Five sororities should have houses at the University of North Texas in about a year, after the university’s regents Monday approved the construction of a sorority row on the campus’s east side.

In a called meeting via teleconference Monday, the UNT Board of Regents voted 8-0 to build five sorority houses for $5.1 million at the southwest corner of Bernard and West Prairie streets, on a vacant lot the university already owns.

A UNT sorority leader praised the decision, saying it will enhance Greek life on campus and make a nice border to the campus.

Amanda Baird, a junior and president of UNT’s Alpha Delta Pi chapter, one of five sororities expected to move into the houses in August 2004, said putting the sororities all into one area will allow the Greek organizations to interact more.

"When the Greek community as a whole is strengthened, each individual chapter will be strengthened, as well," Ms. Baird said.

But the managers of a neighboring apartment complex fear having sororities across the street might bring noise and trash to the neighborhood and scare away potential tenants.

Amber Morris, assistant manager of the 344-unit apartment complex directly across the street from the future sorority row, said even though most of The Oaks apartment residents are UNT students, some have families and don’t want to live in a rowdy neighborhood.

"Not everyone wants to be in a party environment," she said. "Some just want a quiet community, and people find it a relief when they find out we’re pretty strict."

Ardyce Mentzel, the apartment’s manager, shares some of those same concerns, but said is more optimistic about the project.

"I have a lot of respect for young people," she said. "It’s all about respect. You don’t want to live in a neighborhood where the property isn’t kept up. It all depends how they take care of it."

UNT officials said the project would primarily improve student life on campus and secondarily help address the university’s housing shortage.

"It’s an exciting time to be Greek on this campus," said Troy LeForge, UNT’s assistant dean of students for Greek life. "This will provide a strong community atmosphere for women groups and will forge a stronger Panhellenic conference."

Dr. Bonita Jacobs, UNT’s vice president for student life, said the sorority houses would be built in a single building that will be divided into five parts. Each part will be about 7,600 square feet, with enough room for 25 beds. Each part will have a distinct facade on the front to distinguish the separate sororities. In back, a courtyard would allow for many more activities among the Greek organizations.

UNT would own the house and lease it to the sororities with long-term agreements, she said.

The sororities expected to move into the houses are Alpha Delta Pi, Alpha Phi, Kappa Kappa Gamma, Pi Beta Phi and Zeta Tau Alpha.

Of the 13 sororities chartered at UNT, only Alpha Delta Pi has a house, at the corner of Eagle Drive and Welch Street. The house has room for 18 women. Tentative plans are to move out of their current location and move into the new sorority row upon completion, Ms. Baird said.

UNT Regent Gayle Strange of Denton said she believes the improvement to the property will help improve the appearance of the area, and thus the property values there.

And as an alumna of Alpha Delta Pi, Ms. Strange believes the stronger Greek organization will be a boon to the university.

"When everybody’s together like that, people decide to attend athletic events together and other activities," Ms. Strange said. "That’s the community all of us remember and hope the students today will be able to experience."

MATTHEW ZABEL can be reached at 940-566-6884.



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Online at: http://www.dentonrc.com/localnews/st....b27accd8.html

Supposedly we will be getting a Greek Row in the next 2 years, so I share in UNT's excitement!

That is so exciting.

However, did I read it correctly that they said it would be ONE house split to house the five sororities??????

Or five houses.

I'm confused.

radioZTA, thank you so much for posting this article!!

It was also pretty awesome to have some incredible women represent my home chapter in the article!
:D

I am so excited for all of our UNT sororities because I definately feel housing can help bring the chapters closer to each other.

I definately disagree with the apartment managers who were quoted in the story! The houses on Fraternity Row right now are ALL well-kept in awesome condition, and the fraternity houses (and ADPi's) all neighbor apartment complexes with no problems. I definately feel like they are just using the stereotypical "party environment" as an arguement against the project, because right now it is not like that at all.

I'm just so completely thrilled there will be a place for sororities, especially since they are getting close to tearing down College Inn (where 5 of the 6 sororities currently have chapter rooms).

Go UNT! Go Greek! :D

One house split five ways. :D

Man I am jealous, I wish our school would do something like that. :rolleyes:

I'm also confused as to how the whole house thing is supposed to be. At first we were told every sorority would have their own house, and now it sounds like it will be more of like a residence hall-type place and each sorority will have their sections of it?

:confused:

Maybe radioZTA knows what's going on? hehehe

Either way, it is still very exciting, and I am pretty sure all the other sororities involved are just as excited :)

There has been a lot of talk about where everyone will go after College Inn gets torn down, because everyone needs a place to meet, and having a place to live with your sisters is even more fun !

The sorority row will probably improve The Oaks apartments property value. And ten years ago, there were mostly students at the Oaks anyway since it was so close to school.

Yippee for North Texas.

Curious, does anyone know why Chi-O is not moving with the other npc groups?

Any news on expansion since you are down to six groups now?

I found a picture!
 

I found a picture for the story! Here is what Sorority Row is supposed to look like:

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-...6b9388fa7c.jpg

It looks awesome!

KristenAGD - There are still tons of students living @ The Oaks! It's right across the street from campus and is probably one of the more affordable places to live without being icky!

I don't know why Chi-O has decided not to move with the other groups, but I believe they are going to build a lodge on another property sometime.

I think sorority rows like the one pictured really improves the look of a campus. It is a win/win. Great for the groups, and great for the school.
Congratulations!

Both Chi-O and Zeta already own property for houses. I am just assuming that Chi-O still intends to build their own. I know we went back and forth on the issue quite a bit.

We have a recruitment retreat this weekend where the girls and advisors are going to be told all the details by our national officer. I'm unable to attend so I'll have to wait to get the full scoop.

CONGRATS on the new sorority row!! That must be very exciting.
Too bad we will never get houses or at least not any time soon.....damn this southern bible belt...saying that more than like 8 women living is a house is a whorehouse!!! oh well hopefully one day every campus will have housing for their greeks!



Nichole

I'm pretty sure the "whorehouse" thing is an urban legend. Also, being Southern has nothing to do with it... lots of Southern schools have sorority houses. :)

I agree! When I'm out of town, and end up near a college campus, I'll ride around to see if I notice any GLO houses. They really make a campus look great!

Thanks for the information.

Sweet my sisters are getting a house, that is awesome. Too bad I'm not in Texas otherwise I would totally check the house out.

Congratulations girls.

Brianna
Alpha Delta Pi

Congrats!!!! I'm so excited for you guys!!! I'm from Fort Worth, so maybe I can come by and get a tour of the Zeta house in a few years when it's done ;).

YEAHHHHHHHh
 

Wow, I've been gone from UNT for a year and already something big is happening. Great to hear that, since adpi was the only sorority to have a house. My ex-girlfriend was a chi-o so I hope they get a house up there too. I miss UNT I wish I could go back to finish school there.

Re: YEAHHHHHHHh
 

I know how you feel. I went to UNT right out of high school. I have very fond memories of my first years as an adult (Fry Street Fair :p). And I love to hear Texas*Princess talk about UNT, it brings all those old memories back. Of course I was there a long time ago. Fraternity Row was starting to build up while I was there. Sigma Nu and one other were there. Can't remember. Old Age :rolleyes:

KristenAGD - I've heard soooooo many things about Fry Street Fair! Since it was my first year @ UNT last year, I didn't quite get to add the fair to my memories because it was moved to Deep Ellum. Everyone said it just "wasn't the same"... *sigh* oh well. Maybe we will get another fair going in the next year or two :p

The ground-breaking for the new sorority row took place last Friday! All 5 houses will be up and ready for Fall 2003 recruitment and we are all so thrilled!!!! The floor plans for the houses are incredible, and I believe without a doubt they are going to all be beautiful houses :)

edited b/c I can't spell :p

Congrats
 

Congratulations and I hope it works out well for the Greek ladies at UNT.

While I hope all goes well, I have my doubts about School run Houses.

:(

Central Mo. S. U had one, most of the Fraternitys have wanted to get out for years.

William-Jewell had a School donation of land and $ 1 Mil. for each house.

Pittsburg State U. ,Ks. was pushing this, We and the SX. Pikes, ASA, AGD put a defintie No on a Greek Court.

We as all do own our own property Across from Campus!

Look for all of the pit falls, and hope for the very best!:)

This is off topic but I just wanted to say I was on the Willam Jewell campus yesterday and their fraternity houses are nothing short of jaw dropping. There were three of them, LXA, KA, and Fiji. They were seriously some of the most beautiful houses I've ever seen, esp. the KA house!!! I am super jealous!!!!! :( :D

I just had to laugh reading about the apartment manager in the first post complaining about Sororities bringing disruption, parties etc. how off base can you get. Fraternities, yeah they can have trashed out houses, but I've never heard of an out of control party at a Sorority house.
Besides being from Fort Worth(30 miles from UNT) , I can promise all the readers of Greek Chat more hell raising, beer drinking, pot smoking ,nooky chasing and yes the occasional couch tossing goes on in the "apartments" than will ever take place near any sorority house in ever built!

campus owned vs. IHQ owned houseing
 

My campus is all campus run houseing and it is okay. The pros are that we had a house the year after we colonized, the bad is that we can't build our own house. The pro is that our housing is covered with tuition (so loans and scholarships cover the cost) the bad is that our housing is covered with tuition (it is more expensive then living at the UK AGD house).

Also we don't have control over the use in the summer time, but because of the shape (it is the only non-dorm looking house) the summer occupanents are normally campus staff and new profs to the area.

We also don't have to pay for the maintance, taxes, municipals (electric, gas, water), or the lawn care, so our dues are a lot lower than they are at UK. (I am use UK as a example because they are close to us and the school has there houseing cost posted and they are public, where as Georgetown is private.)

We have talked about expansion onto the house at somepoint, which we have the option of doing. Though I don't know who would flip the bill or whatever, most likely it would be a donation from an alum that would cover it and the addition would be named after them.

SO that is my 2 cents on campus owned houseing.... I wish we had a housing thread with blueprints and pictures of the varius housing... the Quarterly this upcoming edition is all about AGD houses and I can't wait.