Category: Off campus
UDF near North Campus robbed
A United Dairy Farmers store near campus was robbed Tuesday morning. An unknown suspect wearing a tan ski mask, camouflage jacket, dark pants and tan boots entered the store, located at 2094 N. High St. by Frambes Avenue, at about 7 a.m. Tuesday. He implied he had a weapon and took money from the cash register, according to a Columbus Police Department media release. The suspect is described as a man in his 30s, between 5-foot-7 and 5-foot-8, of medium build. The media release did not say how much money was taken from the cash register, but the incident was caught on the UDF security cameras. Police encourage anyone with… Read more
Summit, 3rd, 4th streets to get protected bike lane
Biking around Columbus might become safer and easier with the addition of a protected bike lane on some of the city’s roads. The City of Columbus is getting its first protected bike lane, which is a section of the road specifically designated for bicyclists. The bike lane is part of a $6 million project that the Ohio Department of Transportation and the City of Columbus have planned. The lanes will be installed on Summit, 3rd and 4th streets after the roads are repaved this summer, said James Young, administrator in the Columbus’ Department of Infrastructure Management. The initiative, which is scheduled to wrap up in October, is funded in part… Read more
Ohio State aims to increase patrols off campus
As part of a university initiative to increase security near off-campus student housing, Student Safety Service has extended its high-visibility patrols east of North High Street for another semester. Operation Safeguard, which began as a pilot program for the Department of Public Safety in September, allows student officers from Student Safety Service to conduct high-visibility nightly patrols in neighborhoods east of High Street every day with extended hours on Friday and Saturday. “We are trying to make the area saturated with security presence so that anybody who would seek to do a crime would think otherwise,” said Student Safety Service program coordinator Sean Bolender. “It’s more about deterrence than anything.”… Read more
Student Safety Service seeks to be a steady force
Student Safety Service vehicles are often seen shuttling students around campus late at night, but the program does more than chauffeur students from the Union to residence halls on chilly evenings. Student Safety Service recently wrapped up a year of crime deterrent practices, which introduced a bus security program and an off-campus high-visibility patrol initative. In 2014, Student Safety Service provided escort services to 20,496 people. However, program coordinator Sean Bolender said the program provided a variety of services to students last year. He said Student Safety Service worked 3,014 hours, or more than 125 days, outside of escort services in 2014. It worked at sporting events, concerts and other… Read more
Towing companies told to pay customers back
For some students who have been towed by Shamrock Towing Inc. or Camcar Inc., it’s now payback time — literally. Shamrock Towing and Camcar, two Central Ohio towing companies, have reached a settlement with some Ohio drivers for charging unlawful “administrative fees.” Drivers towed between Sept. 1, 2008, and July 17 can now potentially receive $23 to $28 back from the $30 to $35 they were unlawfully charged. According to the class action lawsuit, these companies charged drivers towed in private tow-away zones an extra fee beyond what the state law allows, which is $90 for the tow and $12 per day for storage. “From the tow truck companies’ perspective,… Read more
CABS bus hits pedestrian off-campus
A pedestrian is in stable condition after being struck by a Campus Area Bus Service bus Monday morning, according to a Columbus Division of Police dispatcher. Police received a call that a pedestrian had been hit on North Fourth Street and East 13th Avenue around 10:30 a.m. Monday, the dispatcher said. Medics took the unidentified pedestrian to Ohio State’s Wexner Medical Center in stable condition, the dispatcher said. The person struck is not affiliated with the university, OSU spokesman Gary Lewis said in a Monday afternoon email. The incident report did not say if anyone besides the bus driver was on the bus at the time of the incident, the… Read more
Some students, Central Ohioans to recognize World Aids Day
Some members of the Ohio State and Central Ohio communities are coming together to raise awareness for World Aids Day. Dec. 1 is annually recognized as World Aids Day. It is observed as a day of remembrance for those who have died from HIV/AIDS and an opportunity for others to come together to raise awareness and celebrate those who are living with the disease. Ohio State’s Student Wellness Center and the Multicultural Center have partnered with Columbus Public Health and other community partners to host events during the first week of December, said Blake Marble, an assistant director at the Student Wellness Center. A World Aids Day Commemoration Ceremony will… Read more
Close to home: What it’s like to be a victim of an off-campus crime
From the beginning of the school year to Thursday, University Police have recorded a total of 923 crime reports at both on- and off-campus locations, according to University Police’s daily log. Those reports included everything from public urination and underage drinking to burglaries, sexual assaults and disorderly conduct. And those crimes don’t even include the reports that Columbus Division of Police officers also took in off-campus areas. The Lantern spoke to some of those victims about what it felt like to be the target of a crime, and about what they want other people in the OSU community to know. Armed robbery It was cold outside. That’s one of the… Read more
Catcalling can be a daily vexation on High Street
Hunter Williams said she experiences verbal street harassment every day while walking in the campus area. “People mumble something or say something that might sound like a compliment, but they’re alluding to more,” said Williams, a fourth-year in strategic communication. “I can’t walk down the street without someone saying something.” Verbal street harassment has made its way to the forefront of national conversation after a YouTube video of a woman enduring more than 100 catcalls while walking through New York City for 10 hours went viral. But for some students at Ohio State, street harassment isn’t just a topic of conversation — it’s an ever-present possibility that has created a… Read more
