Oct. 29, 2004
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Blake Bolton
ASI President
756-1291

Cal Poly the Student Community Liaison Committee
Endorses a Citywide Safety Enhancement Zone for Mardi Gras

SAN LUIS OBISPO -- Associated Students Inc. is pleased to announce that the Student Community Liaison Committee (SCLC) endorsed the concept of a citywide Safety Enhancement
Zone during the week of Mardi Gras.

At the SCLC meeting October 21, every voting member, with the exception of an abstention from Mayor Dave Romero, voted in favor of a citywide enhancement zone in lieu of the originally proposed neighborhood zone. SCLC voting members include San Luis Obispo chief of police Deb Linden, City Administrator Ken Hampian, Cal Poly Vice President for Student Affairs Cornel Morton, and ASI student Government President Blake Bolton, and the and Cuesta College student body president, among others.

A citywide enhancement zone would allow all members of the city, not
just students, to be held accountable for safe activities during Mardi
Gras festivities, Bolton explained. Specific neighborhood zones identify
geographical areas that would incur triple fines to persons congregating
on Foothill and California Boulevards and downtown during Mardi Gras.

"If we are ever to solve the issue of community relations especially in
the context of Mardi Gras we need to stop pointing fingers and send a
message that this is a community issue," said Bolton."We also need to address the fact that students and permanent residents should be treated equally despite the location of
their residence."

Students, neighborhood groups and the Chamber of Commerce voiced
concerns that neighborhood zones would create a spillover effect into
other areas not in the safety enhancement zones. The SCLC Mardi Gras
subcommittee raised the issues of equity, perceptions, and messaging,
which ultimately led to the endorsement of a citywide zone.

"This endorsement is a big step towards greater communication with
students because members from each aspect of the community recognized
that issues that face a community must be dealt with by every member
involved," Bolton added.

The San Luis Obispo city council will be presented with multiple safety enhancement zone
options at its next meeting on Dec. 7.

- 30 -