1983_09 Insight September 1983

              CSU
Vol. 16 No. 1
sight
FEE RECEIPT Rl
CARD
higher Ed Breoi
(see center pa *e)
>
September 21, 1983
Fire victims making a comeback
Tenants 'more cautious' after blaze
TamSplti/lnaljchl
In the shell of ber burnt-out bedroom, Chrissy Pahl explains  how the fire which raged through her and Julie Harden's
apartment wa. reported to have started.
The victims of the fire that gutted
out several units in the Plaza Apartments near CSUF are gradually
recovering in the aftermath of the rampage. It has been almost a month since
the blaze, and though there were no injuries, much was lost.
Christine Pahl, a sophomore at
CSUF, shared Apt. 240 with Julie
Harden, also a student, when the fire
occurred on the morning of Aug. 31.
Pahl, who now lives with her parents,
plans to move into another apartment
complex very soon.
"I lost everything," says Pahl. She
added, however, that she regrets her
sentimental losses more. Pahl is
covered under her parents' Home
Owner's Insurance.
The fire originated in Pahl's room.
Many rumors have claimed Pahl's
"overheated" curling iron was the
cause of the fire.
Faulty wiring within the complex
had also been rumored. Fire investigator Jim Morgan, of the Fresno
City Fire Department, however,
disregarded those rumors. He reported
that there was inconclusive evidence to
determine what started the fire.
George Pauls has been busy receiving several bids for insurance with the
insurance companies. He and his wife
Mabel are managers of the Plaza
Apartments, a 250-unit complex consisting of a GO percent student population.
Pauls expects the apartments to be
liveable again by December, while
repairs are being made on the $100,000
damage.
When asked how the fire affected
the other tenants in the complex, Pauls
replied, "They're being more
cautious." He said that they are now
considering getting renter's insurance.
Two out of the six apartments that
burned were covered by renter's insurance.
Lori Robb and Jennifer Edge occupied apt. 242. Right below, Lori's
brother, Darren, and Bruce Nicovich
shared apt 142. AU are CSUF students
who are now back at the Plaza — in new
apartments.
"We saved a lot of stuff," says Lori.
But she added that some furniture,
clothing, and kitchen wares were ruined.
Lori, a senior, has lived at the
Plaza for a year now. She and roommate Edge were back in the Plaza
within a week of the fire. Lori admitted
that she's optimistic about the incident
and said she's  planning  an  "aftei
barbecue barbecue."
Edge says sbe missed a lot of school
but is now getting back to her regular
curriculum. Both girls were in their
apartment when the fire quickly
spread. Edge saved her bed but lost her
books which have since been replaced.
Edge was covered under her parents'
The tenants of apartments 140, 141
and 241 were sent to the Ramada Inn in
Fresno after the fire occurred, at no
cost to them.
Mario and Piero Manno lived with
their parents in apt. 140. The Mannos
will remain at the Ramada Inn until
other accommodations can be made.
One thing Mario Manno made clear —
he feels they haven't received-much
help in the past few weeks following the
fire.
"I'm taking care of myself." said
Mario, who would not elaborate on the
subject, but did add that he and his
family would be moving to another
place.
Laura Hays and Nancy
Weis»nberger, in apt. 241. were also at
the Ramada Inn. They have since
checked out. James Barrows and his
wife Shannon, who lived in apt. 141, are
still residing in a room at the Ramada
Inn.
Plans to solve campus parking woes underway
By Sere Beste
Insight Reporter
If you drive to school and find your
daily exercise routine consists of a frantic 20-minute jog from car to class,
here's good news:
Plans are underway for two new
parking facilities at CSUF. It will cost a
total of $400,000.
CSUF will receive $275,000 from the
CSU Chancellor's Office for the expansion of parking lot Q, said Tim Johnson,
facilities planner at CSUF. The lot will
provide_4fj0 new spaces north and west
along Barstow, almost to Campus
Drive.
Another lot costing $125,000 will be
located on Bulldog Lane near the
stadium. Detailed plans are still underway, but Johnson estimates the lot will
provide 180 new spaces.
Asst. Director of Business Affairs
Jim Forden said that the new parking
facilities will be completed and ready
for use at the start of the Spring 1964
The lots are financed from a
general fund collected by the
Chancellor's Office from each campus
according to its revenues from parking
*"ekers, meters and daily permits.
"All of the campuses in the CSU
system send the money to the
Chancellor's Office,"Johnson said.
"The money then goes into a big pool.
As campuses grow or need parking,
thefr.tap the pool."
Johnson added that funds are
allocated according to need, not individual revenues collected from the
campuses.
Need is determined by comparing
the number of students to the number of
parking spaces. He said that, ideally,
each school should have one parking
space   per   two   full-time   students.
Johnson said that about 6,650
spaces on the CSUF campus would
fulfill the one-to-two ratio.
CSUF has 5,470 spaces. The most
recent survey of campus parking
spaces, taken in 1962, shows that 3,879
are general, 1,191 are restricted, and 68
are for the handicapped.
"We are under entitlement for the
lot," he said. The-batance of the spaces
are metered, are special permit spaces
or are used for motorcycles.
Johnson said the only major, recent, change in parking space
availability has come from the construction of the College Union satellite,
which has taken away 30 to 40 spaces.
As student enrollment increases,
many campuses find it necessary to
purchase additional land to provide sufficient parking. Land and construction
are costly — so costly that most schools
would find it impossible to support
parking programs with their own
revenues. ^
"We think we're having parking-
problems, but when you go to San Jose
State, Sao. Diego State, or San Francisco State, you really see what parking
problems are," said CSUF Chief of
Police William Anderson.
Anderson said that CSUF's advantage is the vast supply of land owned by
the college. "It's far more expensive to
build a multi-level parking garagethan
to lay out black top over a flat ares?" he
said.
Forden and Johnson also agree that
CSUF has an advantage over some
other campuses because of the land
already owned. "San Jose State's only
alternative is to go up," Forden said.
University Facility Planner James
Beck, of the CSU Chancellor's Office,
said that a parking structure comparable to a $275,000 flat lot would cost
$2.25 million.
The land that will be used for Parking Lot Q has traditionally been used by
the School of Agriculture.
Dean Charles M. Smallwood, of the
School of Agriculture, said, "We don't
particularly appreciate our vineyard
being taken; however, it has been in the
long-range plan and we understand the
parking situation."
Forden explained that the fund provided by the Chancellor's Office makes
it possible to expand. He said that
although some schools receive allocations far beyond their revenues, the
fund still benefits CSUF.
"We've actually done quite well
with tbe system as a whole.'' Forden
said.
Forden said the system tries to
order needs "to make sure all campuses are moving ahead at an even
rate."
Student, often have to crntae up and down the jammed parking lot row. in March of an empty stall.
Local company soothes the credit blues
"We can help you obtain Visa and Mastercard. Don't Delay, Do It Today," proclaims
Credit Examiners Inc. in handbills posted on
bulletin boards around the CSUF campus.
And the company can, too, for a price.
For a $125 fee the company, managed by
Kevin Helmer at 95 W. Shaw Ave., can secure a
Visa or Master Charge card with a credit limit
ranging from $300 to $2,500.
Such a service may be helpful to CSUF
students and younger Fresno/Clovis residents
who may have only limited credit experience or
no credit history at all.
To establish a credit history, Helmer advises
bis customers to use the credit cards he offers for
a series of small to medium purchases over a six
month period.
"Then go to your local bank — or open a new
account — and apply for the same card," Helmer
sad.
But some question the recommendation of
getting credit this way.
In addition to the $12S fee, one must deposit
with Helmer an amount of money equal to the
amount of credit one want*. For example, before
receiving $500 in credit one must deposit $500
Credit card approval follows this process:
Once the initial fee is paid, Helmer sends the
credit card application and deposit to Confidential Credit of Lawndale, Calif, by overnight express mail.
Confidential Credit checks the application.
then forwards it with the deposit to United Savings and Loan of Vienna, Va . a suburb of
Washington D.C. Four to six weeks later, if the
application is approved, the credit card is sent to
the applicant.
If one does not qualify for the card, the
deposit is returned in full. One also receives 5V4
percent interest on the deposit as long as the
money is in the account.
Helmer said the money is deposited in
Virginia because California banks and savings
and loan companies don't offer credit cards in
this way. "Most require a $2.000-a-month income
for an unsecured credit card account," he said.
It takes four to six weeks to get your deposit
back from United after withdrawing from the
credit card account, Helmer said.
Officials at two local financial institutions
said that they are wary of tbe method of
establishing a credit history used by Helmer.
Eric Tobias, a financial services officer for
Bank of America's main Fresno branch, said it's
always best to establish your credit history with
the companies doing business where you live.
—    Purchases made with the kind of card
Helmer offers would "be the same as cash purchases to local companies." Tobias said. He explained that because the account is held in
another state, no credit history would be
established in the Fresno area by people with a
credit card from United Savings and Loan. Local
financial institutions, Tobias said, may have trouble getting a credit rating from out of state savings and loan companies because some do not
disclose their customer's credit histories to credit
But Helmer discounted such objections.
see Credit page S
nside
• Police invasion See page 6
• Spitting pastime See page 3
• Summer athletes See page 7