Church has plans for frat house
Site of Spady's death might be community center
By KENT GREEN
KentGreen@coloradoan.com
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Rich Abrahamson/The Coloradoan
CHANGE: Timberline Church is looking to turn the empty Sigma Pi fraternity house into a community center with housing.
A local church has plans to resurrect a sorrowful place into a hopeful one.
The members of Timberline Church are working on a deal to turn the old Sigma Pi fraternity house at 709 Wagner Drive into apartments and a community center.
The deal would not only rejuvenate prime real estate near campus but also would create a place where students could hang out and have fun without drinking.
"That house is a great location for what we'd like to do," said the Rev. Reza Zadeh of Timberline Church. "We want to make a place of tragedy into a place of life."
The CSU chapter of Sigma Pi was disbanded on Sept. 9, four days after 19-year-old CSU sophomore Samantha Spady was found dead in the house. A coroner report revealed Spady died of alcohol poisoning.
The center would house about 20 to 25 people. Potential residents would have to go through an application process, Zadeh said.
In an outline of the church's plans, the house - called the "Lighthouse" - would hold activities such as student-run movie nights, Bible studies, parties and volleyball games.
The house would also hold a free pancake stand from midnight to 3 a.m. on Saturday nights, where students coming home from bars or parties could eat for free.
"I think CSU's campus is looking for groups to send a positive message," Zadeh said. "We as a church want to be there for the community, especially college students."
The church has big hopes for the house's future but does not intend to forget the past. The proposal includes a wall dedicated to Spady's memory.
The wall would be put together by members of her sorority, Chi Omega, and some of her close friends and roommates. It would include things such as Spady's artwork, poems and stories.
"We want her legacy and life to mean something," Zadeh said. "Obviously, her death has changed a lot of people's lives. This is just one way to extend that to more people."
Mark Koepsell, CSU's director of Greek affairs, said even though the house is located in the midst of several Greek houses, he doesn't feel the church's vision is out of sync with the area.
"I think they'll fit in just fine," he said. "I have spoken with students on either side of the house, and they're supportive of it and think it'll be a nice addition to the neighborhood."
Zadeh said the church's idea has been well-received by the university and his congregation. Samantha Spady's family supports the church's plan, he said.
Patty Spady, Samantha Spady's mother, said she likes what she has heard about the church's goals.
"Kids need to be offered an alternative to drinking," she said. "It's going to be a challenge. How do you get a child that's so entrenched in beer culture to flip the other way and say, 'I'm going to follow God?' "
The Sigma Pi venture is the church's first foray into housing. Zadeh said he's had the idea for a house close to campus for several years and has been considering the Sigma Pi house since October.
Sigma Pi had been renting the house from a corporation of Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity alumni who own the house.
The CSU Lambda Chi Alpha chapter was disbanded in 2001 after alcohol violations.
A representative of the Lambda Chi Alpha corporation declined to comment about the deal because it has not been finalized.
Zadeh said he hoped to have things finalized sometime next week, and if successful, to have the house ready by the end of July. He added that the church has been asking for private donations to fund the project.
DeAnza Humphreys, young women's leader for Timberline's Flip the Switch youth ministry, said the church and the Lambda Chi Alpha corporation are still negotiating the price of the lease.
Mark Briscoe, executive director of Sigma Pi's national organization, said Sigma Pi has had no official input into any deals with the house.
Losing the house will not deter any re-chartering attempts Sigma Pi might take when it is eligible to do so in five years, he said. "We will definitely come back to CSU." The former members of Sigma Pi have been supportive of Timberline's plans for the house, Zadeh said.
Darren Pettapiece, the old president of Sigma Pi, has worked with Zadeh and supplied him with logistical information about the house and the work that needs to be done on it.
"I think what the church is doing and turning that place into somewhere where they support students is a great thing to do," Pettapiece said. "Take the bad and turn it into something good. Anything we can do to support that, we will."
Brandi Webster, co-leader of Timberline's Shine women's ministry, said she hopes the house and the church can work to make a difference in the campus community.
"I want to see it be able to reach out to kids who don't know where to go, and then they say "Wait, I know exactly where to go. It's just a few blocks off campus,' " Webster said.
Patty Spady said the community was fortunate to have the church and people like Zadeh who are willing to contribute so readily.
"What he's trying to do is such a positive thing," she said. "It's not the only answer, but it's a step in the right direction. This is one small thing that's going to change the culture that's developed not just at CSU, but nationwide."
Originally published January 15, 2005
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If this deal goes through, I wonder where the chapter will live when they finally decide to recolonize at Colorado State. Its been about four years since they were shut down and it appears to be a nice house.
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