Campus Looks To Mend Rift With Neighbors on Southside

University officials are launching a task force aimed at smoothing out tensions between permanent Southside residents and the rising number of UC Berkeley students who flock to the neighborhood annually, university officials announced Thursday.

Initiated by Chancellor Robert Birgeneau and university administrators last May, the 25-member task force will connect neighborhood residents and leaders across the campus and the city to moderate relations between the two sides, said Irene Hegarty, UC Berkeley's director of community relations.

Throughout the summer, members of the task force have been working to create a formal plan to combat heightened tensions on Southside, Hegarty said.

A tool officials recently launched is a "Welcome to the Neighborhood" brochure filled with emergency contacts, tips and various resources on garbage and recycling information that is being distributed door-to-door by volunteers.

The university will back two student interns who will act as "goodwill ambassadors" and serve as liaisons for student residents and neighborhood associations, Hegarty said.

Increased complaints from permanent residents in recent years prompted the university to take a hard-line stance on coordinating efforts to ease tensions, she said.

"We had some negative events go down last spring like hazing and

alcohol incidents. There were even two student deaths from alcohol and drugs," said Jim Hynes, assistant to Berkeley City Manager Phil Kamlarz.

All of these incidents were happening at once and the task force had to be bumped up to a higher level, he said.

Complaints from neighborhood residents were handled on a case-by-case basis in years past, but due to a lack of parties involved, students were often forced to bear the brunt of the blame, she said.

"We have everyone at the table from the city side and the university side," Hynes said. "We are trying to move out of a crisis-management mode and come up with a plan to get out in front of the problem."

Hegarty said the new task force will be better than previous ones because it is modeled after other similar projects at other UC campuses that have been effective.

Officials from both parties said that they are hoping to expand their efforts to other neighborhoods surrounding the university.

But despite the optimism, Hynes cautioned against quick fixes and pointed to the ever-evolving culture of the Southside neighborhood.

"I think it will be successful but the challenge is going to be how we sustain our successes," Hynes said.

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