PEOPLE come up with great ideas all the time. But as great as these ideas are, they can only succeed if someone takes the time to work through the issues surrounding them. Someone had to debate whether to freeze or refrigerate Jell-O. Chocolate and peanut butter tastes much better than chocolate and butter. Luckily, someone put an elevator in the Eiffel Tower. In much the same way, the plan to keep Clemons Library open 24 hours a day is a good one, but various problems must be addressed before the new schedule is enacted.
After nearly a year of debates and proposals, Clemons library finally will be open 24 hours a day. Finally, hundreds of late-night crammers won't have to get up and ship out when they still have three chapters left to read. Finally, early birds can get a head start on studying for their 9 a.m. midterm. Finally papers, started the night before they're due will be done in one sitting.
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But the proposal should not yet be finalized. While keeping Clemons open 24 hours surely will benefit University students, there still are some issues that need to be addressed if this plan is to be all that it can be. The issues of safety, parking and staffing all are important when deciding how to enact the new plan.
Safety is the biggest concern. Already, many students head home at two in the morning, long after the creeps have snuck out for the night. Some of these students have long walks home, and the Escort Service isn't far-reaching enough to cover all late-night studiers. And now that Clemons will be open all night, the safety of those students who leave at 4 or 5 a.m. should be the number one priority. Fortunately, some headway has been made in the safety issue. In an email response, Student Council President Joe Bilby listed a few plans for increased safety. These include a restricted access policy after 2 a.m., a way for one student to vouch for another under the honor system, and a few security cameras installed at the front entrance.
But these do not ensure safety once a student leaves the library. As ideal as it would be to be able to walk home safely at any hour, the streets of Charlottesville simply aren't safe enough to roam alone after the sun goes down. Sure, everyone knows the buddy system, but odds aren't great that a buddy will be willing to stay at the library as late as his classmate will.
There are some things in the works. Bilby said that there are hopes to "create a system where an Escort van will appear for regular pickups." Even though the Escort Service is an excellent alternative to walking, there is no way it can shuttle all Clemons owls home and still maintain its other service areas. The solution to this is to provide a third Escort van that would run to and from Clemons all night. If Clemons is to be open 24 hours a day, its patrons should be ensured safety 24 hours a day.
Of course the need for an extra Escort van wouldn't be as necessary if those students with cars actually had a place to park. There rarely are free spots close to Clemons at any time. And no student can afford to park in the Newcomb garage every time he needs to study. The buses stop running at midnight, walking is unsafe, and the Escort Service can't handle the numbers as it currently operates.
Bilby agrees that something needs to be done: "We're working on finding a solution to parking problems." Go to it. A new parking area could be built behind Clemons to ensure a free and easy way for students to study late into the night. But as this surely would cost a fair amount of money, a much cheaper and easier alternative would be to keep Newcomb garage open all night, free of charge, for students who need to study at Clemons past midnight. A committee should find out which option would be cheaper -- implementing a new Escort van or keeping Newcomb garage open free of charge to Clemons patrons -- then quickly make it happen. This would ensure both student safety and allow anyone to benefit from the new 24-hour plan.
Another possible problem is finding the staff willing to work night shifts at the library. Sure, it's not as dangerous and monotonous as working the night shift at a 7-11, but then again it's no picnic. In order to keep Clemons running well all night, a dedicated and able staff needs to be hired.
Many of the current library staff are students who do the work-study program. Obviously students cannot work all night and be expected to attend class the next day. Community members will need to be hired. This too will take a bite out of the library budget. Whichever brave souls step up to the 24-hour challenge will need higher pay than current library employees receive. A hiring and payment plan needs to be worked out.
Working through various issues has helped to perfect many great ideas. The plan to keep Clemons open all night is one of the best ideas the University has implemented in recent memory. But until the issues of safety, parking and staffing are addressed, it will simply be a less than ideal idea.
(Brandon Almond is a Cavalier Daily associate editor.).
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