Student Activities Board members and the co-chairwomen of Spring Fever are probably hoping for bad weather.

That’s because if it’s sunny and dry during the months of March and April, work will start on building a wrought-iron fence around the green space at Vandeventer and Laclede Avenues, enclosing the Trova sculpture and other sculptures planned for the area.

The fence could interfere with plans for SAB’s Spring Fever, which is set for April 27. The event is scheduled to take place on the green space, Laclede Avenue and the Loyola parking lot. If the University constructs the fence, SAB members said that that could ruin some Spring Fever plans for a music stage and could inconvenience students.

Jim Anthony from Facilities Services announced the proposed fence at a meeting yesterday. Peggy Sullivan from scheduling and members of parking and card services were also in attendance. The following students from SAB were present: President Ryan Murphy and Spring Fever co-chairwomen Cab Gutting and Barbara Montgomery. Director of Student Life Phil Lyons and coordinators of student activity, Ashli Armstrong and Chris Grabau, also attended the meeting.

SAB members scheduled the meeting as an informational session to gather data from the University about the status of Spring Fever. At the meeting, Anthony informed SAB members that the University planned to build a fence around the vacant lot beginning in March. Anthony said that he had learned about the fence only days ago. He also said that University President Lawrence Biondi, S.J. had approved the planned fence.

Reaction in the SAB office on Wednesday could be described in one word: disheartened. “I’m at a loss for words,” said Murphy.

“I can’t believe this is actually happening because it’s so important for the students,” said Gutting.

“Students have been waiting for this since the beginning of school,” said Montgomery.

“It’s a disappointment to me, the organization and the students because we can’t have this.”

The University News attempted to contact four top University administrators for comment. None of them returned the phone calls.

In mid-November, Murphy questioned Biondi about plans for additional statues in the “pasture” area in an e-mail.

Biondi’s response to Murphy, in an e-mail given to The University News by Murphy, stated: “Please rest assured that we will protect large areas for the Spring events for tents or whatever for the Pasture. Besides, that area for sculptures is only temporary.”

In addition, when Kathleen Brady, vice president of facilities management and civic affairs, was recently asked about the future of the Trova sculptures, she commented: “All [statues] are being installed along the perimeter of the [field] so that events, such as Spring Fever, will still have a large open space for staging their events.”

The plans for the green space call for the entire area to be enclosed by a fence, similar to the one surrounding the area bordering the corner of Grand Boulevard and Laclede Avenue.

The alley that runs east to west along the northern edge of the lot will be torn up and grass will be planted. The only way to access the area will be through a driveway that leads up to Biondi’s lodgings, or through a fire lane that runs along the western edge of the Village.

Therein lies the problem for SAB.

The plans for Spring Fever call for a stage to be set up in the field. The stage is comprised of a tractor trailer. It would be difficult for the trailer to get to the “pasture” and set up. Also, Murphy said that the fence will split the event in half.

“We don’t know where to go from here,” Murphy said. “Even if we have to move it off campus, we’ll keep planning.”

The current dilemma concerns Montgomery. “The fence will hinder the future of Spring Fever for Saint Louis University,” Montgomery said.

According to a faxed blueprint of the area given by facilities services to the SAB, the fence has been under consideration since Dec. 8, 2000.