Destructive behavior still a concern

Furniture burning, public urination and sporadic fireworks at all hours of the night are familiar sights on a PSU party night to the dismay of local authorities and the towns select board. Valerie Scarborough, the Chairman of the Plymouth Select board acknowledged that there have been an increased number of complaints regarding noise and behavior this year as opposed to previous years. A meeting was held at town hall on Sept. 22 to follow up last week's CCC and senate meetings to brainstorm solutions to the growing problem.

Board member Wallace Cushing and President Steen both agreed that the town of Plymouth and the University has each "dropped the ball" in their respective efforts to solve the problem, and both plan to work together towards a solution. Scarborough suggested "greater cooperation" between local and campus authorities along with incorporating academic consequences alongside legal ones. A concerned citizen spoke out demanding stricter presence of authority and local vendors who carry alcohol to be more conscious. 

One element that seemed to be unanimously agreed upon was the contact of local landlords to hold them accountable for their residents. An anonymous source from Inter-Lakes properties reported someone climbing into a window and stealing money from a tenant's bedroom, but aside from that only minimal vandalism. Charlie Buhrman, a selectman and property manager is suing four students who caused $5,000 dollars to their leasehold. Another landlord, Doug McLane reported that he tried to break up a party last Saturday of over one hundred students. As Doug tried locating the property owner, rocks were allegedly hurled by the rowdy partiers.

Officer Doyle of UPD reported five or six instances of graffiti around campus in the last two weeks, all with the word "sick" as the signature, a problem that stretches back to last spring. Approximately five cement anchored signs have been ripped from the ground and a car was recently scratched up. Broken glass bottles around high foot traffic areas are a reoccurring grievance on campus along with one woman reporting that someone vomited on her front walkway. 

Between 10 p.m. and 2 a.m. the campus only has two police officers on duty, meaning they can't be everywhere at once to prevent every single disturbance. Instead, they turn to the internet and utilize modern networking sites such as Facebook to curb parties before they even begin. "I've called and asked if I can bring the chips and dip," Detective Jennifer Frank of UPD said. The method proves to be an efficient way of reducing the rowdiness on campus. While this may be frustrating to some students,  it steers them away from getting into legal trouble.

Although this is progress on the problem there is almost no way to pinpoint each rogue individual that causes damage. "The majority of our students are very good," President Steen said when asked about the issue. Solutions and negative repercussions affecting the entire student body are certainly on the horizon if the increase in vandalism continues.