Was there trouble at the Reservation?

Twitter talks about next year's party being bigger--why doesn't West/South Orange require an appropriate security deposit that can be returned to the group once the grounds are inspected for cleanliness the next day? Doesn't seem like an unreasonable ask.

bak said:
Twitter talks about next year's party being bigger--why doesn't West/South Orange require an appropriate security deposit that can be returned to the group once the grounds are inspected for cleanliness the next day? Doesn't seem like an unreasonable ask.

Well, they held the party illegally, so I'm not sure how requiring a deposit would help.

Good point--can't imagine that either the county or the affected towns would allow this to happen again next year without reaching out to these orgs preemptively and sharing what is required to throw this kind of party, given the conditions of the space afterwards.

So, who's going to complain to the fraternity's national office/chapter/whatever? It should come from several people to apply pressure. Everyone should start tweeting and calling the schools.

Are there any photos of the aftermath?

I wasn't up there at all this weekend, but as a local who enjoys the reservation, I find it disgraceful just hearing about it. If I'm armed with photos, I'm happy to voice my displeasure.

Interesting South Mountain Reservation picnic permit: http://www.essexcountyparks.org/_media/_data/EssexResource/picnic-permit.pdf

No booze, no DJ's/loud music, and groups may be required to carry up to $1M in insurance.

Wasn't there an issue with a similar group a few years ago? I recall the county closing the s-turns and barricading the entrance to the drive in anticipation of the unlicensed event.

judy3x said:
Wasn't there an issue with a similar group a few years ago? I recall the county closing the s-turns and barricading the entrance to the drive in anticipation of the unlicensed event.

I think it was the same group. When I heard about this it brought back the memory of last time. Guess they figured it was worth the shot to chance it again.

If someone is concerned contact MSU and NJCU dean of students. They're always looking to look at fraternities and illegal parties with damage to public property.

Yes, I remember this happening many times years ago and the res being closed down yearly bc of it

Yes, I remember this happening many times years ago and the res being purposely closed down yearly bc of it

Email addresses for the two Deans of Students:

howellr@mail.montclair.edu

lhamlin@njcu.edu

I just sent them both a brief note. Can't find an email address that works on the Iota Phi Theta website.

I didn't realize the relationship between universities and frat houses; so yes, complaining to both the university and the national of the fraternity sounds like a good idea. And if they are already planning next year's even, why aren't the university and town and frat national already on top of this, especially if it has happened before already???

Sounds like a big ball has been dropped repeatedly if no one is trying to rein this in after repeated offenses.

I already heard back from one of the Deans and she is going to look into it immediately. She had not heard - I am going to go out on a limb and assume that the police dealt with this as individual violations rather than notifying the parent organization(s).

@CLK: Thanks for the e-mail info. This burns me up enough that I will e-mail as well, and ask for specifics as to what plans are in place to have these frats clean up their mess!

Definitely the radio station AND the national organization of the frat AND the university. Can (or did?) someone post contact info for any or all of those as I'm sure many here would join in the communication if it is made easier.

E-mails just sent to both deans, ending with:

"What I hope to hear back from you is what plans are being made to have the responsible parties clean up, and pay any expenses of cleaning up, the garbage left behind in the reservation and to return it to the condition in which they found it.

I look forward to hearing from you soon with a commitment to overseeing these plans and making sure they are carried out immediately."

Now on to the National Fraternity......

Just for some info: South Orange could not punish anyone for anything that might happen in the Res., because no part of the 2000+ acres is within that town's boundaries. The Res. is divided between Maplewood, Millburn and West Orange.

I don't know the relationship between these particular schools and their frats, but universities in general may not have much power over any fraternities whose houses are neither on u. land nor owned by the u. I suppose they might be able to ban students from belonging to any fraternity or sorority that might be on a banned list, however.

CLK: I just sent an email to the Fraternity through the e-mail box I found on this page:

http://www.iotaphitheta.org/contact

I made a point of telling them that, though they may not have been aware of this specific event, I'm sure they're concerned about how they want their fraternity to be perceived in the areas in which they have chapters, and the nation as a whole.

I also asked them to get back to me to let me know what steps they would take to make sure the trash is removed and the Reservation is returned to the state in which they found it.

My email to the Deans is below. I received this response from Dean Hamlin: "We are researching this incident now...we will respond as soon as we can find out who was involved. Thank you for this information."

"Dear Deans Howell and Hamlin,

I am a resident of South Orange and a runner in the South Mountain Reservation. I ran on Saturday and was disgusted by the condition of the park, the worst I have seen in ten years. As I am sure you are aware by now, the roadway was littered with bottles, plates, glass, food, cups and other trash. The South Mountain Reservation is the crown jewel of Essex County’s Parks System and no park anywhere should be left in such a condition.

I understand that the un-permitted event below [I attached the flyer advertising the event], which was broken up by several police jurisdictions, was the cause of this condition. Though I do not believe either of you had direct responsibility for this event, as University leaders you have the power and ability to take appropriate actions, whether against individual students, their fraternities, or sponsors, to ensure that this never happens again. In addition, the communities affected should be reimbursed for any and all costs associated with this event, including police and fire costs, trash removal and other services, and this event should be permanently banned from the South Mountain Reservation.

My father is a retired Dean of Penn State University and University of Kentucky, and if an event of this nature occurred at either of those institutions, he would have taken action immediately, as I am sure you will do as well.

Thank you and enjoy the summer."

chopin said:
Just for some info: South Orange could not punish anyone for anything that might happen in the Res., because no part of the 2000+ acres is within that town's boundaries. The Res. is divided between Maplewood, Millburn and West Orange.
I don't know the relationship between these particular schools and their frats, but universities in general may not have much power over any fraternities whose houses are neither on u. land nor owned by the u. I suppose they might be able to ban students from belonging to any fraternity or sorority that might be on a banned list, however.

They cannot ban anyone from joining anything, really. But they can de-recognize/revoke any organizational recognition they have with the school. That includes putting up rush posters, advertising activities, or using campus facilities in any way as an organization.

Greek orgs can and do run underground, but generally speaking they do not do so as part of a national. The national organization has, generally, little tolerance for nonsense on the chapter level. They simply shut it down for a few years, let the "members" graduate and go away and then start over.

So yeah, the dean of students on your tail is not good. Didn't any of you see animal house

"Zero point Zero

Thanks for the contact information. I also plan to reach out.

eta: Jackson fusion is right - the university ca fail to recognize the fraternity, which believe it or not, can cause major issues for said chapters. I unfortunately did see Animal House. Wasn't this also a plot point in Revenge of the Nerds?

Has anyone been through today? We drove through yesterday afternoon and just about every part of the road we drove on was litteredwith cups, plates, wrappers, crushed beer cans, etc.

I just sent an email to the two deans. Do we have contact info for the national organization and/or the radio station? (Sorry if someone posted already and I missed it.)

SAC: I wrote to them at:

http://www.iotaphitheta.org/contact

Here's the contact info page at Hot 97: http://www.hot97.com/contact-us

rbcole123 said:
My email to the Deans is below. I received this response from Dean Hamlin: "We are researching this incident now...we will respond as soon as we can find out who was involved. Thank you for this information."
"Dear Deans Howell and Hamlin,
I am a resident of South Orange and a runner in the South Mountain Reservation. I ran on Saturday and was disgusted by the condition of the park, the worst I have seen in ten years. As I am sure you are aware by now, the roadway was littered with bottles, plates, glass, food, cups and other trash. The South Mountain Reservation is the crown jewel of Essex County’s Parks System and no park anywhere should be left in such a condition.
I understand that the un-permitted event below [I attached the flyer advertising the event], which was broken up by several police jurisdictions, was the cause of this condition. Though I do not believe either of you had direct responsibility for this event, as University leaders you have the power and ability to take appropriate actions, whether against individual students, their fraternities, or sponsors, to ensure that this never happens again. In addition, the communities affected should be reimbursed for any and all costs associated with this event, including police and fire costs, trash removal and other services, and this event should be permanently banned from the South Mountain Reservation.
My father is a retired Dean of Penn State University and University of Kentucky, and if an event of this nature occurred at either of those institutions, he would have taken action immediately, as I am sure you will do as well.
Thank you and enjoy the summer."

Very well said! Kudos on taking the time and effort to do this

Sorry for the thread drift, but none of the Reservation is in South Orange? What about the dog park area?

TarheelsInNj said:
Sorry for the thread drift, but none of the Reservation is in South Orange? What about the dog park area?

It's in Maplewood. Maplewood extends north to a small part of SO Ave , including The Top and the reservation/dog park. You see it more clearly on a map.