A charity event, which would have brought homemade cars and fast downhill chases to campus this past Sunday, was postponed after the costs of using University facilities made the event prohibitively expensive to host.

The boxcar derby, which would have raised money for a scholarship for Binghamton High School graduates, was to be hosted by the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity. Students built boxcars and were to race them down the curved road in between Parking Lot L and Parking Lot M ‘ the winner and best-looking boxcar owner were both to receive prizes. Greek organizations, like Phi Kappa Psi, often have to contend with hosting charity events and paying the fees charged by the University to use campus space and services, making it difficult to raise enough money to make the event worthwhile.

‘They wanted over 2,000 bucks with all the costs,’ said Nicholas Sepe, president of Phi Kappa Psi. ‘If the prices are that high, then there is no reason to do anything on campus. We might as well raise that money to give to the charity. In turn, the school is basically taking money out of the hands of charities that really need it.’

‘They did not tell us about the charges we were going to incur until two weeks before the event,’ said Sepe.

According to Sepe, the University Police Department charged the fraternity for the cost of the police officers necessary for blocking off the road and Physical Facilities charged them for several services, including the towing of cars not moved by their owners and post-event clean-up.

These fees are set in advance for the school year by the Campus Chargeback Committee.

‘The committee sets the prices for different departments within the University to charge, including Physical Facilities and University Police Department,’ said Karen Fennie, spokeswoman for Physical Facilities. ‘The rates run the same across the board for all groups, regardless of whether or not they are [Student Association] chartered.’

Last July, the Campus Chargeback Committee increased prices set for Physical Facilities.

Several groups have instead chosen to move events off campus to avoid the high fees. Such situations are unfavorable and take away from the school, according to Jack Causseaux, the greek life adviser.

‘It’s good to have these events on campus. They are student activities and should be connected with the University. Greek God in particular.’

Greek God is a well known on-campus event in which members of different fraternities compete in a talent and physique competition. The charity event is run by the sisters of Alpha Epsilon Phi to raise money for the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation.

According to Erica Goldstein, president of Alpha Epsilon Phi, the cost of Greek God increased dramatically from the previous year.

‘The unexpected charge was around $3,000,’ she said.

Sepe believes that the fee increase is an act of bad will on the University’s behalf.

‘We just feel betrayed by the school because we always volunteer on campus for various events; it is basically a stab in the back to our fraternity,’ said Sepe.

Even with the high prices, however, the men of Phi Kappa Psi remain set in their plans for charity work.

‘We are a bunch of stubborn kids,’ said Sepe. ‘There is no bump in the road too big that will hold us back. Our fraternity was started on the joy of helping others and we abide by these values.’