 The Center, opened in 1986, features facilities for basketball, volleyball, and other sports, as well as sponsoring cultural activities on the Western Carolina campus.In January 1989, Ramsey was ousted as Speaker of the House when Republican Governor James G. Martin secretly joined his party's forces with 20 Democratic state representatives led by Joe Mavretic.These Democrats, who represented North Carolina's larger cities, had grown resentful of what they regarded as Ramsey's autocratic control of the legislature, and of his tendency to support representatives from small, rural counties over those from more urbanized areas.