Holding onto houses when chapter is dormant

Originally posted by efcheerBB
Where is/was the AGD house at MSU located? Because if I am thinking right, your house used to be on Ann Street, right? And if that is the house I am thinking of, I think Alpha Omicron Pi bought that house. They now live there. This is their first year in that house. But I could be greatly mistaken.

Elena

AGDee's a Province Director-Collegians and she's from Michigan so I'm sure she'd know for sure about the Chi chapter house.

I highly doubt that the house could EVER be sold. Emily Helen Butterfield, one of our 11 Founders, was the architect who designed the house (along with the Alpha Chapter house).

There's just too much historical value, and I know that our alums will fight tooth and nail to get Chi Chapter back!

[AGDee]

Yes, the house is on Ann St. AOPi is renting it from Alpha Gamma Delta. It's an awesome house! We have an active alumnae chapter in East Lansing and hope to recolonize as soon as the campus can support more groups. I think Alpha Xi Delta has first option to recolonize there though. I'm not positive about which group it is that has first option and I know some groups aren't at Total, so there's no telling when the campus will be able to support it, but we'll be waiting anxiously!

Dee

[efcheerBB]

Originally posted by OohTeenyWahine
AGDee's a Province Director-Collegians and she's from Michigan so I'm sure she'd know for sure about the Chi chapter house.

I didn't know this. Sorry if I stepped on your toe's AGDee.

I highly doubt that the house could EVER be sold. Emily Helen Butterfield, one of our 11 Founders, was the architect who designed the house (along with the Alpha Chapter house).

There's just too much historical value, and I know that our alums will fight tooth and nail to get Chi Chapter back!

That is incredibly awesome. I understand why the alums would want to keep it!!

Sorry that I mis-spoke. Being an alum myself, I only know what goes on with my SDT now-a-days, so I am not aware of the housing status of other sororities at MSU. Thanks for letting me know. I misheard one of my AOPi friends. I thought she said that they had bought that house. But alas I was wrong.

Originally posted by AGDee
Yes, the house is on Ann St. AOPi is renting it from Alpha Gamma Delta. It's an awesome house! We have an active alumnae chapter in East Lansing and hope to recolonize as soon as the campus can support more groups. I think Alpha Xi Delta has first option to recolonize there though. I'm not positive about which group it is that has first option and I know some groups aren't at Total, so there's no telling when the campus will be able to support it, but we'll be waiting anxiously!

Dee

Like stated above, sorry if I stepped on your toes.

Elena

[AGDee]

Not at all! I'm sure most think that AOPi bought the house.

I apologize if I sounded harsh. Really, I didn't mean it to come out that way.

I saw a bunch of photos of our early chapters at the Archive Room at last year's Convention, and many of them included the Chi chapter house. I was so sad to hear about its closing a few years back, and I really hope Chi (along with our Alpha) recolonizes soon. If Alpha Beta (UofM) can do it, I know we can too!

Emily Helen Butterfield was a woman who wore many hats. She was a prized architect, an expert on heraldry, and wrote a significant amount of our Ritual...I'm surprised AGD doesn't hang on to EVERYTHING that touched her hands!

[efcheerBB]

hijack

Originally posted by OohTeenyWahine
I apologize if I sounded harsh. Really, I didn't mean it to come out that way.

OohTeenyWahine, you weren't harsh. You were just letting me know that AGDee would be one to know the status of the house. I am still learning about members of GC. I was just apologizing for being uninformed The house is nice from the outside. I have never been inside, but I would love to see the inside to see the beauty in there too I might just call up my friend and ask to see the house...if we can find a common time to get together that is.

end hijack

My apologies to Rudey that this has gone a bit off topic. Now back to the regularly scheduled thread :-)

[ladygreek]

Informative reading. Never thought I'd say this, but thanks Rudey for the thread topic.

[Coramoor]

Originally posted by DeltAlum
But if the House Corp owns the house, Nationals is not liable for payment of the mortgage.

I believe that the decision of whether to keep an aging house is becomming more difficult to decide as universities upgrade dorms, etc.

I was pointing out if the HQ owned the house. I believe that the Sig Eps have it so that their nationals run their houses. I could be wrong, but I think I remember reading that somewhere.

Fifty, Sixty years ago a lot of HQs owned chapter houses. It got to the point were the cost of running them was going to bankrupt a few nationals. I know that KA had a problem with this a few decades ago.

It's a great idea, but a huge risk.

My example was definitly on the cheap side. When you have 4 million dollar homes, the cost is a lot higher.

[roqueemae]

Haha. We had a religious group inquire about renting a house on fraternity row. Since we had a few chapters get suspended recently, they thought it would be easy to walk in and just buy out a house. There are 2 problems with that
--They want to do this use the location to minister to the fraternities. I am sure that would be very successful
--Also the University has a clause that the land be used for fraternitiy houses. A non-affiliated group could not live in any of the houses.

We have had NPHC groups buy houses from disolved IFC/NPC groups. It is a nice arrangement. It allows for some interaction between councils that might not have happened otherwise. Right now the Alpha Phi Alpha's and the Kappa Alpha Psi's are considering renting a house together on Fraternity Row.

[Tom Earp]

Rudey Excellent question, makes a lot of people think!

How many Alums or even Atives know the answer to the question You asked. Actually damn few!

House Corporations who Own the Property are the deciding factors. Yes, and I am a Member of My Houseing Corp. We are the Elected Deciders of what will happen with said Property. All Members are exfacto Members, but to damn few really care.

So as I mentioned earlier, LXA has Group that is a psuedo part of LXA and they have purchased Some Houses and have rented them out until a rechartering.

Sometimes the property has been sold. It is by School to School decision.

[radioZTA]

Although ZTA does not currently have a chapter at SMU, we still own a house there and have been renting it out as a Panhellenic house.

[FSUZeta]

and as larue knows, some zta houses/lodges/suites are owned by our national housing corporation and others are owned by local housing corporations.

[radioZTA]

Yep. The SMU house is owned by a local house corporation.