Yale Commission Reports on Riots

A three-man commission appointed to study town-gown friction in New Haven has published a series of proposals to improve relations between Yale and the surrounding community. Named on March 30 by Richard C. Lee, Mayor of New Haven, the commission was set up after riots following a St. Patrick's Day parade caused the arrest of 16 students.

The most ambitious proposals made by the commission were those intended to relieve traffic problems in the Yale area. As well as closure of several streets now running through the campus and construction of a student parking garage, the commission's report called for a $3 million vehicular tunnel passing under downtown New Haven. Such a tunnel might be financed jointly by the city and the university, the commission suggested.

Other recommendations concerned the establishment of better relations between students at the college and New Haven residents. "City police should not use clubs on students or enter student rooms except to stop crime," the commission urged, and particular care should be taken in choosing the policemen who make foot patrols in the university area. In addition, clearer distinction should be made between the jurisdiction of the city police and that of the campus.

The city and university should combine, however, in a joint and consistent effort to make townspeople realize Yale's value as a taxpayer, a cultural asset, and a helper in community enterprises, the report maintained.