University administrators are considering long?term plans to move all fraternity and sorority houses in the block bounded by Professors Row, Sawyer Avenue, Packard Avenue, and Curtis Street, where most Greek houses are already located.
"I think everybody's thinking that this is a good concept," Dean of Student Affairs Bruce Reitman said. "It serves many agendas: school spirit, social venue, town?gown, fraternity and sorority life."
Reitman said he would prefer to relocate Sigma Phi Epsilon (SigEp), who this year left their house at 114 Curtis St., within this block.
Vice President for Operations Dick Reynolds said the long?term plan involves gradually converting the other housing and office space in the block into units appropriate for the remaining Greek houses that are not located in the block.
"The concept is that we only have three or four [Greek houses] that are outside of this block," Reynolds said.
Two Greek houses - Theta Delta Chi (123) and Zeta Psi - would not need to move because they are close enough to the block at their location across Packard Avenue, according Reynolds.
Four remaining Greek houses - Theta Chi, Alpha Omicron Pi (AOII), Alpha Phi, and SigEp - are now outside of the block and would most likely be affected if plans materialize.
Dean of Student Affairs Bruce Reitman said that the plan is long?term and gradual, with no specific timetable for moving forward.
"It's a conversation that I've had with any number of people, but never do we talk about it as if we're going to see it in two or three years," Reitman said. "This is a long?term, evolutionary process as opportunities become available."
Administrators said removing Greek houses from residential neighborhoods would improve community relations, while a planned outdoor common space in the middle of the block would benefit Greek activities.
Reitman said Greek houses' social activities often disturb off?campus residents.
"Some of the houses that are located more peripherally...tend to be irksome for the neighborhood," Reitman said. "The kind of purpose and social function that they have is exactly the kind of thing that stresses town?gown relations most."
"To have the social venues be a little bit internal to the campus is probably a good thing," he said.
A green space that would open up in the middle of the block would be ideal for cookouts and sports, according to Reynolds.
"Essentially make this block a Greek quad and then open up the middle as sort of a park area so you can have cookout areas behind there," Reynolds said.
Alpha Tau Omega (ATO), Delta Upsilon (DU), Chi Omega, Delta Tau Delta (DTD), Sigma Nu, Zeta Beta Tau (ZBT), and Alpha Epsilon Pi (AEPi) are already located in this block and thus would not need to move.
If a fourth sorority comes to campus, then that sorority would also ideally be included in this block, according to Reynolds.
President of SigEp Stephen Gurdo said that this concept recently came up in a meeting with one of the organization's alumni and university administrators while discussing the fraternity's future options.
"[They were] talking about our options after we heard from [Walnut Hill Properties] that we wouldn't be able to use Curtis Street for the year," Gurdo, a senior, said.
"[They were] just thinking about the future of what could be a possibility because it was something that they thought Tufts thought about looking into."
To accommodate Greek organizations, the many buildings currently on the block would be rebuilt to house a larger number of people, according to Reynolds.
"In many of the cases, the houses that are there that might be the spaces, the lots, that convert to fraternity or sorority or other lodging house use, have facilities on them that aren't large enough to be lodging houses themselves," Reitman said. "So you need to raise them and rebuild something specifically for that purpose."
Health Service would retain its location on Professors Row despite any changes, Reitman said.
"Health Service is also there, obviously, and is not likely to change purpose or function," Reitman said. "That facility is built specifically to be what it is." Walnut Hill General Manager Bruce Ketchen first proposed consolidating the Greek houses more than 10 years ago, according to Reynolds.
"For a variety of reasons, [it] never got traction," Reynolds said. "I think it's come up again because I'm more interested in the fraternity system than [the Vice President for Operations] that preceded me."
