TUSCALOOSA, Ala.: New multimillion-dollar mansions with white columns, wide balconies and grand foyers line the streets at the University of Alabama, and more are under construction to accommodate the school’s booming enrollment and record membership in Greek-letter groups.
But with the powerful Greek system embroiled in controversy over claims of racism and electioneering, some wonder whether the massive expansion serves only to consolidate their power.
Records provided to The Associated Press by the university show that Alabama’s Greek-letter social groups have undergone a $202 million building boom over the past decade that’s left the school with what one study say is the nation’s largest Greek system. Construction or expansion of about 30 houses is being financed by using public debt to provide loans that are repaid by private groups, university officials say.
The result is a public university campus dotted with palatial homes that provide desperately needed housing for thousands of students on a campus that’s spilling over its historic boundaries.-AP
“I certainly think it’s a win-win for everyone,” said alumnae Jennifer Meehan of Gamma Phi Beta, which is building a $12 million, 40,000-square-foot home on a prime lot on a road named for legendary Crimson Tide football coach Paul “Bear” Bryant.-AP
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