Students attack plans for Chancellor Green rotunda
The administration's plans to convert the Chancellor Green rotunda into a library were derailed, at least temporarily, at the U-Council meeting yesterday afternoon, after students bombarded University officials with complaints that the administration neither informed students about the plans nor solicited their input.During a tense meeting that administrators struggled to control, students argued that the two-level Chancellor Green rotunda should continue to serve as a cafe and location for special events, like the annual Salsa Party or Chinese New Year celebration.Administrators ? who earlier in the meeting presented their detailed plans as already finalized and said the issue only appeared on the meeting agenda "by popular demand," according to Provost Jeremiah Ostriker ? conceded that additional discussion with students on the proposal would be necessary before renovations would proceed.Associate provost Allen Sinisgalli said afterward he was "distressed" and "frustrated" by the agitation over what he said should be a decision made by administrators, not students.Referring to the 744 signatures on a petition to maintain the Chancellor Green rotunda as a social space, Sinisgalli said, "I think most people would sign anything.