The Triangle

Issue date: 10/10/08 Section: News

Media Credit: Olivia Garrity

Media Credit: Olivia Garrity

The Alpha Pi Lambda fraternity returned to their Victorian home on 33rd Street and Powelton Avenue this fall after losing recognition in 2004 and rebuilding their fraternity.

"In 2006, the fraternity itself as an entity, as an organization, was permitted back on campus," David Kaganovsky, president of the Alpha Pi Lambda alumni corporation, said. "By May 2006, we had initiated the first new group of fraternity brothers."

The withdrawal came in response to Apple Pi's decision to forgo a hearing before the Greek Judicial Board and to take responsibility for violating the University's policies, according to former Triangle articles.

"The fraternity closed, students were expelled from the building, the building was boarded up, all with cooperation of the alumni association, Alumni Corporation of Alpha Pi Lambda," Kaganovsky said.

As an organization, Apple Pi focused on rallying the alumni and getting things organized with them and on the house to some degree, according to Kaganovsky.

"By March 2006, we formally launched a fundraising campaign and the campaign was really focused on organizing people that are members of the fraternity through the different eras," Kaganovsky said. "Chuck, the fundraising chair, pulled together a brochure and program and we went out and started evangelizing. I would say that the first 200,000was easy."

The individuals who contributed became donors to the University towards an Alpha Pi Lambda fund. According to Kaganovsky, in many cases of the 132 people that donated to the first phase of fundraising, many of the people brought in became first time donors to the University.

"Phase two [of fundraising] starts Oct. 25," Kaganovsky said. "We're having a grand reopening. The idea is to invite the entire campus. Jim Tucker will be here to essentially cut the ribbon and we want it to be an open event from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m. where the house will be open, ability to walk around, bring back our alumni."

Pat Ward, president of the fraternity, said the point of the day is a celebration, a public presence.

"Most people have never been inside this house," Kaganovsky said. "We're really proud of it and we want to show it off."

After the first fundraising efforts raised $500,000, the alumni association used the funds towards the house.

"By January 2008, beginning of the year, we had done a study, hired an architect and said what's it going to take to bring this house up to safety perspective, a livability perspective," Kaganovsky said.

Most of the work was completed by Drexel University, according to Chuck Gunheim, an Apple Pi alumnus and architectural and fundraising Chairman of the Alumni Association. With help from Tucker and their organization, this was possible, Gunheim added.

"When he [Tucker] finally organized the troops behind us we took the money we had and started coming up with how we were going to execute it," Kaganovsky said.

Historically, the house was built in 1891 by a rich brewer in Philadelphia and was one of the first Victorian mansions in the neighborhood.

"We're on the historical registry, but not as an independent property," Gunheim said. "We don't have to have full historical restoration for everything."

According to Gunheim, the house itself was in fairly bad condition when the fraternity was closed four and half years ago.

"A lot of hardwood floors were lost, we took out our old steam-heated system, and this house is now all heated, only fully air-conditioned fraternity house on campus at this point," he said.

One piece of the house that brings out its Victorian character is the staircase.

"All members of fraternity will always appreciate the nature of the staircase and how important of us to have a safe environment to keep it," Kaganovsky said.

Along with safety, the reconstruction of the house also focused on handicap accessibility.

"One of the things we made a point to adding, this is a fully handicap accessible real bathroom with a handicap shower," Gunheim said. "The intentions are to make the first floor of this house fully handicap accessible which would be another Drexel first in a fraternity."

According to Gunheim, one of the endearing features of Alpha Pi Lambda fraternity, up until its closure, was an annual haunted house that ran for several weeks before Halloween which people would line up around the house to experience.

"Unfortunately, due to the amount of effort that we put in to fix it up, we can't do that anymore," Gunheim said.

One thing the fraternity did was reinstate in the constitution the standards to which all the brothers are held; not just strategy, but tactics as well.

"We have to hold everyone to the same standards, and if we don't then things break down," Kaganovsky said. "Good news is, we haven't had to throw anyone out, the pain that we went through to rebuild this fraternity and the hard work, it's not something that we want to repeat. I'd like to go forward, not backwards. Our tolerance for that is very low."

The fraternity is working on the creation of a stronger brotherhood, so the graduates turn out to be better people, according to Gunheim.

"Sixty-five years of positive is better than four years of negative," Gunheim said.

"I think this is an example of the best of this University; alumni, undergraduates and the University all come together and look at the results; the results are spectacular. We couldn't be happier," Kaganovsky said.

The fraternity, formed in 1935, has about 30 members today, 23 who currently live in the house.

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