MSHP News Fall 2008 - Ball State University

Student Spotlights- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -Planning Student Raises Awareness About Downtown MuncieStudent Editorial—Jennifer GerdomAs a Ball State student with an interest in subjects like urbanplanning and historic preservation, being involved in adowntown is important to me. Moving to a new place, I was excitedto spend time in downtown Muncie, but soon noticed little tono students present. I was new to the area, and thought, “Okay,it’s the beginning of the school year and people are still gettingsettled.” As time went on, there were still very few patrons fromBall State. I have noticed that The Village is crawling with students,and I started asking myself, “Why?” What does The Village offerthat downtown does not? First, the Village is closer to campus; it ispractically part of campus, and the limited parking around there willprove that. Downtown is not quite as close, but did you know thatit is almost the same distance away as Ball State’s stadium? UsingShafer Tower as a landmark, it is approximately 1.5 miles from thestadium, translating to roughly 4 minutes by car and 25 minutes byfoot. From Shafer Tower to Kirk's Bike Shop (located downtown) itis a mere 1.7 miles, translating to approximately 7 minutes by carand 33 minutes by foot. So then, what’s the problem? For thosethat don’t have their own transportation or don’t want to walk andprefer to ride public transit, the Ball State Shuttle buses run to thestadium, but not downtown. But alas, the MITS buses run fromBall State and can drop you off at their bus station, which is locatedright at the heart of downtown Muncie! So now we have almostequal distances from the far side of campus and from the corners ofWalnut Street and Jackson Street.Also, The Village offers an urban setting and feel. It is enjoyable towalk around, and hot spots are in close proximity to one another.There are places to eat and meet with friends and to take part inother leisurely activities. Downtown Muncie also offers an urbansetting and feel, and many easily-accessible hot spots. The nameThe Village even suggests it is a place which provides a relaxing andenticing atmosphere, in which one may relax in an urban settingthat somehow manages to provide a small-town ambiance. Canyou think of another place that also offers a strikingly similarexperience?After speaking with a number of students, it was shocking to findout that people who have been here as long as three years havenever been downtown, except to work on a school project. Whois to blame, the students for not exploring? The university for notadvertising what is to offer downtown? The city of Muncie itself,for not making a stronger effort to appeal to students? Perhaps acombination thereof? No matter who is to blame, we are wherewe are, and we need to work together to get out of our currentsituation. When I look at Muncie, I see opportunity, potential, andappeal. If you want great cup of coffee to wake you up, Muncie hasit. If you want a unique dining experience, Muncie has it. For thoseof you who are of age and would like to go to a bar not too closeto campus, Muncie has it. There is a historic theater downtown;campus is not the only place to watch a live play. There ARE thingsto do in downtown Muncie! All you have to do to find them iskeep your eyes open. If you look hard enough, you will noticethat businesses want students, which is proved by the studentdiscounts offered by them! Understandably, students may nothead to downtown because the chances of running into friends, likeyou can easily do on campus, are slim, but that is because they arein the same boat as you! Nobody seems to know what is offereddowntown, so nobody seems to go. It is a catch-22, if you will.Living downtown is yet another unique experience you can’t get oncampus. For those of you who would like to “take a break” fromcampus, living downtown is the perfect way to do so. After a longday of school, getting out of that atmosphere and into anothermight be exactly what the doctor ordered. Did you know thereare numerous living opportunities downtown? I wasn’t sure howmany students knew, until I found out some were on a waiting list!There are a number of apartments above retail stores and otherbusinesses that are available for rent, but most are full, and studentsare patiently (and perhaps impatiently) waiting to move into one.Perhaps it needs to be made known that there is a large demandfor downtown living arrangements, which, in turn, might show thecity of Muncie, real estate investors, and landlords that they needto refurbish more buildings with upstairs apartments, allowingstudents to move in. Maybe if the people come first, the retail willfollow. Regardless, mixing downtown Muncie and students whoalready live approximately 7 minutes away by car, just seems tomake sense. However, a major obstacle may be affordability. Yes,we all know the “I’m a broke college student,” phrase, and beingable to choose where to live is not always an option. If downtownMuncie could find a way to cater to students, keep living affordablefor students who appreciate a historic downtown atmosphere, andcan prove to be responsible about it, then it could be a win-winsituation!As for the direct benefits to Muncie, keeping the downtown areaviable is very important. I don’t think anyone would want to watchMuncie fall back into somewhat of a “dead zone” as it did a decadeor so ago. Muncie has bounced back beautifully, and I think thatwe students, as the younger generation, should be involved inrevitalizing areas such as downtown Muncie. It is a shame to watchbeautiful old buildings, original planning, and that old-time feel ofdowntown areas disappear.If you are interested further in learning about how you can becomeinvolved with downtown Muncie, there are groups you can becomeinvolved with (check out downtownmuncie.com). You can alsolog onto facebook.com and search for Ball State Students LoveDowntown Muncie, which, as the name hints, is the beginning of astudent organization to connect Ball State students and downtownMuncie. Ball State is Muncie; Muncie is Ball State. A properconnection must be made, and students have the most powerfulvoice for creating this connection. We need each other. Pleasebecome involved.