Kappa Alpha Theta opens new $500,000 sorority house

Ribbon-cutting ceremony brings alumni, members together

By SHARON STELLO
Assistant City Editor

Nearly 150 people gathered at the Kappa Alpha Theta house Saturday, but not for a party on the Row.
Sorority members were celebrating their house's $500,000 refurbishment with a ribbon-cutting ceremony from 1 to 3 p.m. Remodeling of the house's front side was completed in January, but they decided to wait until some of the landscaping was done to have an official ceremony.
"It went from a '70s-style beach house to being one of the most beautiful houses on the Row," said Nicole Colombo, Kappa Alpha Theta president and a senior majoring in business. "Now it's like a nice Pasadena house."
The look of the house's front has changed from boxy with two balconies to a more multi-dimensional style. A pamphlet distributed at the ceremony describes the new style as an "updated French façade unique to the Row."
The upper-floor bedrooms with windows overlooking 28th Street now have a study area where a balcony used to be. Also, the president's room has an extended balcony on the west side of the house.
Other improvements include air conditioning controls in each room and an individualized intercom system. The house's security has also been beefed up with a new camera system and a four-way split television screen so a guard can monitor the premises.
"Once or twice the house has been broken into in the last three years," Colombo said. "It was when we were all gone for vacation, but the house needed improved security."
Also installed were an alarm system, a modernized fire sprinkler and smoke detection system, modifications for handicapped access, wiring for fiber optics to provide access to the University Library Network and construction of an attic to provide extra year-round storage.
The house was first built in 1955 and has not been expanded since 1980, although minor changes are made each year, according to literature about the remodeling.
Sorority member Allison Dalbeck said she believes the house's exterior look now matches the style and refinement that is found inside.
"We're very happy because it's a whole new house," Colombo said. "We feel like we're living in a dollhouse."
Almost 60 students live in the house at 653 W. 28th St.
Chris Gobrecht, head coach of the women's basketball team, cut the ribbon with the help of Colombo, Becky Gill, the 1999 president and a junior majoring in international relations, and Lorna Reed, who is a member of the board of trustees.
Gobrecht and Reed were both members of Kappa Alpha Theta when they went to USC.
Vicki McCluggage, Kappa Alpha Theta House Corporation president, gave a speech at the ribbon cutting. She was a Theta in the '70s. Much of the funding for the renovation came from the House Corporation and from alumni donations.
"We cut the ribbon, sang Theta songs and gave a long tour of the house," Dalbeck said. "It's the one time of the year when the men can go upstairs."
Kappa Alpha Theta is currently seeking donations to finish paying for the remodeling. By giving $350 to the house, a personalized, engraved brick will be displayed in the newly landscaped front or side courtyards.

Copyright 1999 by the Daily Trojan. All rights reserved.
This article was published in Vol. 136, No. 35 (Tuesday, March 9, 1999), beginning on page 1 and ending on page 3.