SUBHEAD: How is the Ross case really going?
According to U.S. crime statistics, every sunrise makes it less likely that police will catch whoever shot and killed Terris Ross two years ago yesterday. Nationwide, fewer than 7 percent of unsolved murder cases are cracked after two years. The Ohio University students who were here when it happened -who, even if they didn't know Ross, can remember the chill of fear that enveloped this town when he was killed -mostly are juniors and seniors now. When they're gone, the Ross murder will fade into that morass of received Athens lore, along with the spooks at The Ridges and the Moonville tunnel ghost. But that would be a crime almost as great as the murder itself. We can never forget Ross.
The Athens Police say the investigation is going great. Every time a reporter sits down with Police Chief Rick Mayer or County Prosecutor C. David Warren, the interviews are effusive: We know just who the killer is, they say. We're pursuing leads even now, but, gosh, we just don't have enough evidence for an arrest. That story was plausible in the first weeks after Ross was killed, and Warren was still telling it at election time. Yesterday, however, marked the 731st day since Terris Ross spent his last hours on Earth. Authorities' rosy depictions of their investigation hold no water anymore. It's time for them to either change their tune or make an arrest. The clock is ticking.
HED: It takes a village SUBHEAD: OU needs city, county help for diversity Minority representation clearly is lacking in both Athens and Ohio University. That assertion is well-known in Athens and OU President Roderick McDavis is taking a logical -and much-needed -course of action when trying to confront that problem. Recently McDavis has advocated that in order to successfully recruit more minority students, the city of Athens needs to accommodate the businesses that would appeal to minority students and would make Athens a friendlier and more hospitable place of residence. Those accommodations are indeed a necessary step for the city and the university to take to make Athens a more diverse area. The only way for Athens to become a diverse place is to develop infrastructures that would appeal to the complete spectrum of minorities and not just a specific one.
McDavis has provided the community with a logical plan of action and the responsibility now falls at the feet of the community's leadership: city council, county commissioners, etc. One possible way for the local government to encourage the development outlined by McDavis would be to offer incentives -such as tax abatements -to new businesses that would improve the chances of those businesses surviving. Court Street, for example, is a prime location for new business development because of the numerous vacancies in the Uptown area. The city and the county could rationalize assisting fledging industries, because the potential increase in revenues could outweigh the minor financial losses that would be incurred in the first few years. Also, owners of Court Street property could assist with the new development by offering generous leases to the starting businesses, and benefit themselves -the addition of new rental fees -in the process. Bill Theisen, one of the three county commissioners, told The Post that the commissioners offer tax abatements to Specialty Books, Anheuser Busch and the HDL Center, and that it might be possible to offer abatements to a hair salon or something similar. The commissioners, of course, need to investigate further, but hopefully some sort of agreement can be reached to attract businesses that could appeal to minorities.
With the increase of more businesses that cater to the preferences of diverse students, it is only logical that OU will be better prepared to attract more minority students. That potential increase in minority students would result in more revenue for both the university -through tuition and fees -and also would benefit the wider community of Athens with more diversity of skin color, beliefs and ideologies. OU and Athens are interdependent, so it stands to reason that anything that benefits one will likely improve the status of the other. Diversity is lacking in Athens and anything that increases it is an excellent decision.
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