Even as plans at the University of Central Florida to expand Greek housing on campus keep moving forward, another UCF fraternity has decided against pursuing a house on campus to instead move into the growing Off Campus Greek Park.
KnightNews.com has learned from sources in Lambda Chi Alpha that the fraternity announced plans Tuesday night to move into a large house next to the Phi Delta Theta house on Khayam ave.
Noah Miller, the housing chair of Lambda Chi Alpha, confirmed to KnightNews.com that they will be finalizing paperwork to get access to the house this week. “The brothers of Lambda Chi are excited about it,” Miller said. “Its really a great thing for our chapter.”
The future Lambda Chi house has the same basic design as the Phi Delt house and is located right next door. Phi Delt moved to its Khayam Ave. property within the last year or so, vacating its former house on Darwin Dr. Zeta Beta Tau fraternity then quickly moved into Phi Delt’s old property.
Delta Upsilon moved into the house behind ZBT’s new house around that same time, on Mendel Dr. Other fraternities, Beta Theta Pi and FIJI, also have houses on Mendel Dr., across from DU.
The Off Campus Greek Park, located right behind the Sterling Apartment High rise, is becoming so large, that complex promotes how its within “walking distance” to Greek housing it in its advertising to UCF students.
Other fraternities, like Delta Tau Delta, set up an off campus fraternity house in a Pegasus Landing building. Tau Kappa Epsilon has a house in Campus Crossings.
It’s not clear who will occupy two new Greek houses planned to be constructed on UCF’s main campus. Currently, Sigma Chi, Alpha Tau Omega and Kappa Sigma own fraternity houses on UCF’s original Greek Park.
When Sigma Alpha Epsilon was kicked off campus following a hazing scandal, UCF decided not to sell the house but instead rented it to Theta Chi on the condition the house would ban alcohol and a Graduate Assistant would live in the property.
Those conditions have turned other fraternities off from trying to living on campus, however, Theta Chi has continued to grow larger in its new house.
Lambda Chi was likely the last fraternity with enough members to afford UCF’s prices to live on campus, so it appears sororities are the front-runners to take two planned houses on campus. Sororities’ national organizations ban alcohol from their houses already, so having to be dry to live on campus isn’t a deterring factor in their decisions.
The Off Campus Greek Park does not fall under UCF’s requirement to have alcohol-free housing and is also outside of UCF police jurisdiction. It is instead patrolled by the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.
KnightNews.com will continue following this developing story and let you know when Lambda Chi expects to move in. Check back for updates.
