After living and working in Athens for decades, many city officials know how to spot a freshman.
Whether it’s by the Ohio University lanyards dangling from their necks, the fact they’re walking aimlessly with a dozen other young students, or that they just looked both ways before crossing Court Street, Mayor Paul Wiehl said that it isn’t too hard to tell.
This isn’t particularly annoying, he added, unless one considers that most freshmen stick right in their comfort zone all year instead of experiencing Athens for what it’s worth.
“Keep looking around once you hit the end of Court and Carpenter,” Wiehl said.
“Freshmen go up to the Armory and turn right around and walk back. Stretch your legs more.”
Athens City Councilwoman Chris Knisely, D-At Large, added that freshmen should do more than learn the names of the streets and pronunciations of Uptown business — they should get to know city officials.
City Council meets every Monday at 7 p.m. in the council chambers on the third floor of the Athens City Building to discuss everything from bike paths and city funding to party and safety ordinances (if there are five Mondays in a month, council will not meet on the last one).
Footage of the meeting is uploaded to the city council website and streamed on the government channel in Athens.
“You can learn a lot about local events just by watching it,” Knisely said. “You can also learn about pending legislation for things that directly affect you like parking or noise regulations.”
Knisely added that freshmen should put forth an effort to review their rights and city regulations with the Athens City Police Department, or to target local problems head-on with the graffiti task force and cleanup crews headed by the city.
“Just take advantage of what the city has to offer, and start at city hall,” Council President Jim Sands said. “The city has a lot of activities that are posted and officials who are directed to help any new people in town.”
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