College, Not Fly Club, Will Open Garden Gate

The Fly Club will no longer be responsible for opening and closing the gates to the "People's Garden," a Harvard-owned property adjacent to the club, Dean of Students Archie C. Epps III said yesterday.

Epps said Quincy House Superintendent Ronald W. Levesque will be in charge of opening the Plympton St. park, which is across the street from Quincy House. However, the Fly Club will still be responsible for keeping the grounds and mowing the grass Epps said.

Although Harvard severed ties to the nine all-male final clubs in 1984, Epps has said the College entered into an agreement with the club to keep the garden plot whole. Epps has called that agreement an "experiment."

The club's ability to maintain its contract came into question last fall when a student found the fence surrounding the garden locked during daylight hours.

"In the past we've relied on the club, but [regulation of the gate] has not been done," Epps said.

The garden is supposed to be accessible to "College groups and anyone in the Harvard-Radcliffe community" in the spring and fall, said Ellen Hatfield-Towne, the dean of students' assistant. The garden is not open at night because of the lack of adequate lighting, she added.

"There's no problem with the superintendent doing it as long as they make sure [the garden] is locked at night," said Fly Club President Jeremy V. Stein '89.

The garden became a topic of debate when Lisa J. Schkolnick '88 filed a gender discrimination complaint with the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination (MCAD) in 1987. Schkolnick has argued that thefinal club is connected to Harvard because itcares for the College's portion of the garden.

Schkolnick and her lawyer have maintained thatbecause of these and other ties with the Fly Club,it falls under MCAD's jurisdiction.

The state agency has not yet ruled on the case