betsy
03-08-2010, 09:00 AM
(Latest regulations highlighted in red below for those with limited time or who want to find them again.)
After reading (here: http://audubondallas.org/forum/showthread.php?t=1370 ) about the way Sandy and group were chased off of a parking garage roof last Saturday, I wrote the following to campus Asst. Police Chief Bob Newton (since Chief Bickers is out of town):
Dear Mr. Newton,
As one who has many times viewed the heron rookery on weekends from the roof of either Garage 1 or garage 3, and even led Audubon bird watchers there on three occasions a few years ago, without encountering any objections from a campus policeman, I was surprised and dismayed to hear that another Audubon member, who had led a few birdwatchers to the roof of Garage 2 yesterday (Saturday) morning, was chased away by one of the campus police officers.
There is nothing on the University website's parking pages to suggest that access to these garages is restricted on weekends if the gates are open. Has there been a change in policy, not reflected on the website, that we should let our members know about? Or were our members perhaps confronted by a zealous new officer who was insufficiently familiar with the existing policy? And if that was the case, is there anyone a person might ask such an officer to contact for advice on policy should such an event occur again?
As you might imagine, we bird lovers have a great affection for the rookery. In fact, it surprises me that the homeless individual(s) mentioned by yesterday's officer are being allowed to camp in the rookery, especially now that the birds have started to return. The health of both kinds of residents, humans and birds, is at risk from bacteria in each other's droppings.
Regards,
Betsy Baker
an Audubon Dallas member
This morning I got this reply:
Ms. Baker,
Thank you for contacting me in regards to your visit to UT Southwestern's south campus last weekend. We frequently have visitors who look and photograph the Egrets that reside in the Rookery. However, we must ask that you not enter any of the physical structures around campus without first contacting the Office of Business Affairs and obtaining expressed permission to do so. Business Affairs must be made aware of any/all access to these areas first, and will then, notify our Police Department of any authorized/expected visits that include access to restricted areas.
If an affiliated member of UT Southwestern faculty or staff accompanies you during your visit, the affiliate should be prepared to present his/her UT Southwestern Identification; and you will be allowed to proceed without further interruption. Visitors are permitted to walk around the outside of the Rookery without seeking prior approval, where we most often observe our guests.
I spoke with the officer who contacted your group; and he explained he may have been unclear during his initial contact when he directed you to leave the parking garage. Therefore, he contacted your group shortly after this initial communication and explained it was permissible to remain around the rookery area, but not in the parking garage. He cautiously advised the group that he has seen homeless individuals enter/exit the rookery. This was simply a cautionary statement made for your safety. No one is allowed inside the tree line without official business. We quickly contact anyone seen entering or leaving the tree line.
Contact information for the Office of Business Affairs follows:
Dinah Middleton
Administrative Coordinator
Office of Executive Vice President of Business Affairs
(214) 648-3573
Thank you again for contacting in regards to this matter. Please feel free contact me again if I can be of further assistance.
Sincerely,
Bob Newton
Assistant Chief of Police
UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas
Police Department
5323 Harry Hines Blvd.
Dallas, TX 75390-9027
214-648-8311 (Main)
214-648-2829 (Fax)
Something seems very wrong here. Since when is it not permitted to enter physical structures of a state university campus? I wonder if this is fallout from that crazy who flew his private plane into the IRS office in Austin recently, not to mention all the other exhbitions of insane rage that have occurred since 9/11. Government employees may be justifiably paranoid.
This will require follow-up enquiries (and protests, I think), but I felt it important to share this information for the benefit of anyone planning a visit to the rookery in the near future. Photographers may want to alert the local photography clubs. I've made other enquiries and will report the answers as they come in.
After reading (here: http://audubondallas.org/forum/showthread.php?t=1370 ) about the way Sandy and group were chased off of a parking garage roof last Saturday, I wrote the following to campus Asst. Police Chief Bob Newton (since Chief Bickers is out of town):
Dear Mr. Newton,
As one who has many times viewed the heron rookery on weekends from the roof of either Garage 1 or garage 3, and even led Audubon bird watchers there on three occasions a few years ago, without encountering any objections from a campus policeman, I was surprised and dismayed to hear that another Audubon member, who had led a few birdwatchers to the roof of Garage 2 yesterday (Saturday) morning, was chased away by one of the campus police officers.
There is nothing on the University website's parking pages to suggest that access to these garages is restricted on weekends if the gates are open. Has there been a change in policy, not reflected on the website, that we should let our members know about? Or were our members perhaps confronted by a zealous new officer who was insufficiently familiar with the existing policy? And if that was the case, is there anyone a person might ask such an officer to contact for advice on policy should such an event occur again?
As you might imagine, we bird lovers have a great affection for the rookery. In fact, it surprises me that the homeless individual(s) mentioned by yesterday's officer are being allowed to camp in the rookery, especially now that the birds have started to return. The health of both kinds of residents, humans and birds, is at risk from bacteria in each other's droppings.
Regards,
Betsy Baker
an Audubon Dallas member
This morning I got this reply:
Ms. Baker,
Thank you for contacting me in regards to your visit to UT Southwestern's south campus last weekend. We frequently have visitors who look and photograph the Egrets that reside in the Rookery. However, we must ask that you not enter any of the physical structures around campus without first contacting the Office of Business Affairs and obtaining expressed permission to do so. Business Affairs must be made aware of any/all access to these areas first, and will then, notify our Police Department of any authorized/expected visits that include access to restricted areas.
If an affiliated member of UT Southwestern faculty or staff accompanies you during your visit, the affiliate should be prepared to present his/her UT Southwestern Identification; and you will be allowed to proceed without further interruption. Visitors are permitted to walk around the outside of the Rookery without seeking prior approval, where we most often observe our guests.
I spoke with the officer who contacted your group; and he explained he may have been unclear during his initial contact when he directed you to leave the parking garage. Therefore, he contacted your group shortly after this initial communication and explained it was permissible to remain around the rookery area, but not in the parking garage. He cautiously advised the group that he has seen homeless individuals enter/exit the rookery. This was simply a cautionary statement made for your safety. No one is allowed inside the tree line without official business. We quickly contact anyone seen entering or leaving the tree line.
Contact information for the Office of Business Affairs follows:
Dinah Middleton
Administrative Coordinator
Office of Executive Vice President of Business Affairs
(214) 648-3573
Thank you again for contacting in regards to this matter. Please feel free contact me again if I can be of further assistance.
Sincerely,
Bob Newton
Assistant Chief of Police
UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas
Police Department
5323 Harry Hines Blvd.
Dallas, TX 75390-9027
214-648-8311 (Main)
214-648-2829 (Fax)
Something seems very wrong here. Since when is it not permitted to enter physical structures of a state university campus? I wonder if this is fallout from that crazy who flew his private plane into the IRS office in Austin recently, not to mention all the other exhbitions of insane rage that have occurred since 9/11. Government employees may be justifiably paranoid.
This will require follow-up enquiries (and protests, I think), but I felt it important to share this information for the benefit of anyone planning a visit to the rookery in the near future. Photographers may want to alert the local photography clubs. I've made other enquiries and will report the answers as they come in.