Students have portable toilets on South Campus, but many feel the addition is not a solution to a bigger problem.
After hearing community members' complaints about students urinating on South Campus property, UB placed Porta Potties near the Main Street bus stop. Many students believe public urination is disrespectful, but it isn't South Campus' main issue. Some students think the problems associated with the University Heights, South Campus' surrounding neighborhood where numerous students rent houses, are much larger than a small population of students defacing campus property.
WIVB first reported UB students were urinating outside amidst the South Campus party scene in late October. Monday night, the station revisited the issue and said the Porta Potties were UB's response to the public urination complaints. The broadcast has started a bit of a buzz on campus.
"I just feel like, in general, the media is going to want to put something out there and it's going to be in the extreme - very positively or very negatively, rarely in the middle," said Robert Mora, a senior health and human services major. "You have students who are ignorant, and then you have ones that are nothing like that and have more respect for property."
UB Spokesman John Della Contrada released a statement on behalf of UB and said footage that appeared in Monday night's story was "weeks old."
"The university has since taken steps to curb this behavior and address other issues raised," Della Contrada said. "According to UB Police, these steps have been effective."
These steps include increasing University Police presence at bus stops, exploring additional bus stops off campus and establishing a "Quality of Life Task Force" to pursue solutions in the neighborhood. Della Contrada also said the university is launching an off-campus housing website that "excludes" houses that are known as "party houses" or are not up to code.
Some students said urinating on the building near South Campus' bus stop late at night is a "common practice" and has been happening for years.
Della Contrada said the measures "appear to be working" and added the university has not had a single student arrest or citation from Buffalo Police for the past two weekends.
Residents who live in the University Heights community have criticized UB for not taking enough measures to keep its students under control. Many say the 24-hour bus system is one of the main causes of the problem.
Some students say weekend partygoers have gotten out of control.
"I don't feel like the Porta Potty solution is the answer," said Kelley Thomas, a junior biology major. "I feel like the main problem is underage drinking and alcohol consumption that's going on every weekend."
Some permanent residents in the Heights believe the problems with student house parties have expanded and say that it is time to speak up.
"It's an old problem, but it's gotten worse over the years," Mickey Vertino, president of the University Heights Collaborative, said to WIVB.
In a community meeting about the Heights early last month, residents came together to talk about the situation and shared their frustrations; the current bus system was the main talking point. Many feel like the neighborhood is being disrupted because of its destination as a party center.
Some students have concerns about their university getting attention because of public urination. Orendael Miller, a freshman business major, worries students are being generalized and tied to the act.
"It's definitely not all UB students," she said.
email: news@ubspectrum.com
