Bright future
Intramural lights benefit students

“The greatest good for the greatest number.” - John Stuart Mill

The utilitarian approach so often is used to keep the majority happy.

For TCU, the utilitarian approach is often weighing whether the students or the community is the greatest number.

In the months preceding Winter Break, the administration hosted a series of meetings to see exactly where the community stood on the issue of lighting the intramural sports fields.

Despite TCU’s major renovations to the area, especially Berry Street, the majority of TCU’s neighbors was sharply opposed to the “sight polluting poles” that would “lower their land values” and fill their yards with light.

So TCU compromised with taller, more attractive poles and less light in nearby yards.

However, city law prevented the poles from being as tall as TCU proposed and the neighbors still thought the poles were ugly.

But why let the city laws and pesky neighbors stand in the way of the interests of TCU students?

So TCU did the right thing. The administration convinced the city council to grant a variance to the law and started construction to light the intramural sports fields.

Was it the research that showed students prefer to play at night that convinced the administration to go forth with their plans? Or was it the sharp increase in the number of forfeitures of games combined with slumping participation numbers?

Either way, just 12 weeks from now, the students can return to playing the sports they love at the times most convenient to them. Though just a small step toward the students having a voice in administrative decisions, a step nonetheless.

As for the neighbors, well, who knows?

Perhaps their land values will plummet, lives will be ruined, and they will be forced to move far, far away from TCU.

Seems unlikely doesn’t it?

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