Another MSU fraternity has been hit with the possibility of ceasing operation due to noise violations.
Members of The Delta Chi Fraternity, 101 Woodmere Ave., will be evicted from their house if the East Lansing Housing Commission upholds a suspension of the fraternity’s rental license.
The commission suspended the license for 180 days beginning Jan. 2, 2003, at a meeting Thursday.
“It’s not essentially going to close down,” said Jason Pociask, chapter president and building construction management senior. “The city’s giving us the opportunity to kind of revamp the way we do things around here.”
The commission may reconsider the suspension if the fraternity presents a reasonable program for altering behaviors at the commission’s Nov. 21 meeting. The building cannot be occupied when a rental license is suspended.
In a written statement, Howard Asch, director of East Lansing Code Enforcement and Neighborhood Conservation, said three serious noise violations prompted the commission to impose terms and conditions in May 2001. Those restrictions kept the house open and allowed the commission to assist the fraternity in correcting nuisance behaviors.
Terms and conditions are imposed when it appears a licensed rental property has established a pattern of behavior that disturbs the neighborhood. The length of Delta Chi’s sanction ran May 2001 to May 2002. But further violations in October 2001 and January 2002 led to the commission suspending the rental license.
The commission’s pending action leaves the house members wondering where they will live next semester.
“I don’t want 40 to 45 guys out in the cold in the middle of December,” Pociask said.
Asch said the commission was concerned because of a lack of alumni involvement with house relations. But Pociask said the organization’s governing alumni board is helping the fraternity.
“We’re kind of seeking counsel from them,” Pociask said. “As far as our house is concerned, it’s in their hands.
“From what I got at the meeting, it seemed like they didn’t want to close us down. Nobody’s really hitting the panic button yet.”
On June 15, 2001, Sigma Chi had its rental license suspended following various noise, trash and code violations. The house closed a week later after code enforcers found holes in the kitchen walls along with damaged electrical outlets and plumbing.
The fraternity re-opened this semester.
Jason Carmel Davis can be reached at davisj44@msu.edu.
