Today, just as at the time of the University's founding in 1819, communication between city residents and students remains pathetically rare. If anything, dialogue between students and Charlottesville residents has boomed whenever significant problems have arisen - prime examples include traffic from football games and noise from late night parties. While our relationship with the community has been on the whole a healthy one, there is room for improvement. Formation of a permanent University committee to serve as a forum for airing concerns between University administration, students, townspeople and city officials would be of great benefit to us all, and would help to solidify and strengthen our relationship.
Many committees currently exist which serve to enable communication between the community at large and the University. Among them are the Office of University Relations and the University Community Police Liaison. Creation of a broader, town-hall type of committee designed to hear concerns on a wide variety of topics from both University and community members would be a great aid.
In the beginning, Mr. Jefferson designed the University in its current location on the west side of town for a variety of reasons - among them, he wanted to separate the University from the center of Charlottesville. As the University grew, a group of shops now known as the Corner sprang up, serving University students and faculty. This was around the mid nineteenth century.
Surprisingly enough, not much has changed. The Corner is, without question, the most frequented commercial area in Charlottesville by University students.
A permanent committee between the city and the University would help to improve business for non-Corner based local merchants, first by making students aware of other shops and restaurants throughout Charlottesville, and also by facilitating advertising and return business through communication.
Broader community problems like homelessness and hunger can be addressed by this committee, and could help tap many valuable resources of the University. The Salvation Army downtown, for example, serves hundreds of people and children in need each day by providing food, daycare and housing, among many other services. Currently Madison House provides a healthy battery of volunteers for the Salvation Army, but more can be done. More volunteers could be recruited. More clothing drives could be implemented. A permanent committee of University and city representatives could help get a message of need out quickly and broadly to the University community, as well as provide for quick and viable solutions.
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Other prevalent problems, such as traffic concerns, could be addressed in a clear and organized manner using a permanent committee like this. Traffic and parking are constant headaches for students and townspeople alike. There is a common anger among Charlottesville residents about the number of cars that flood town each August. University students know that finding parking around Grounds can be a living hell. If you live off-Grounds, you may even have found yourself getting a ticket from the city while parked in front of your own apartment. Football and basketball games can bring Emmett Street to a total standstill. Promoting dialogue and brainstorming sessions within this permanent committee to find solutions to parking and traffic problems can help us all get where we need to go with less run-around and idling in the midst of traffic.
Providing a forum for the unforeseen, too, would be another example of the great benefits a Charlottesville city-University committee could support. The recent racially-targeted attacks on University students have sparked much debate and discussion between city and University officials. What better place for this discussion to take place in a committee created for this very sort of purpose? Quickly facilitating dialogue would have aided tremendously in both capturing those responsible, creation and reorganization of neighborhood watch groups, as well as providing a sounding board for University and community members to voice their concerns.
Improving the 183 year-old conversation between the University and Charlottesville at large is a task long overdue. By no means is this an exhaustive list of the benefits a permanent committee between the city and the University could offer. Increased revenue for the city, more local support and aid for University programs, and rent adjustment for property surrounding the University all are potential byproducts of such a committee. By permanently strengthening ties with those around us and making communication and organization faster and more organized, the lives of both University students and Charlottesville residents will become a lot more enjoyable.
(Austen Givens' column appears Mondays in The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at agivens@cavalierdaily.com.)
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