By Toma Lynn Smith
Each time it rains hard, Threlkeld Hall resident Luke Spicer needs to carry an umbrella both indoors as well as outdoors. According to Spicer, bad weather causes leakage in Threlkeld and garbage cans must be put out to catch the falling water. The same can be said for Unitas Tower, where a leak in the ceiling splashes water down onto a pool table in the building’s lobby.
According to University of Louisville Housing Director Shannon Staten, continuous bad weather has prevented repairs from being executed.
“It simply hasn’t been dry enough to fix the leaks,” Staten said.
Staten and the Physical Plant’s Associate Vice President for Facilities Larry Detherage said they were just recently able to fix Louisville Hall’s tornado damage which happened earlier this semester.?
Despite its problems, Louisville Hall is a newer building which was built in 1990.
Other residence halls, such as Stevenson, Threlkeld, Miller and Center were built 1959 through 1970. Wellness House, West Hall and Unitas Tower were built in the early ’70s.?
The apartments of Medical-Dental and University Tower were built in the ’60s.?
With these older buildings, Staten said finding money for upkeep and maintenance has been a difficult process.
“We’re going to do everything we can to maintain them,” Staten said. “State funding was not given to update the residence halls such as Miller.?We are currently working on another plan to secure funding for renovations.”
Staten said some of the residence halls will get some serious attention this summer. Threlkeld will be getting a thorough cleaning, which it has not had in eight years, due to year-round use.?
“What we will do is take the month of May and into June and to do some work in Threlkeld that it needs – deep, deep cleaning,” said Staten. ?
Minor painting, some carpet repairs and servicing of the baths will be part of the process.
Former residential director Albert Burton attested to the older residence halls having seen their fair share of renovations.?
Burton, the U of L Student Activities Coordinator, said, “I promise there are 50 coats of paint on the walls in the rooms.”
Some students like the sense of history the older residence halls present.
Freshman Center Hall resident Alyson Hill said she likes her dorm and the new dorms take away from that traditional “feeling.”?
Spicer, a freshman engineering major, also said he was prepared for structural problems when he started living on campus.
“It was pretty much what I expected coming in,” Spicer said. “[The hall] is definitely not new, but it seems like most things are in shape.”
Other residents have said the problems of the older residence halls have become safety hazards for them.
“Some time when I’ve gone to plug in my computer sparks will shoot out from the outlet in the wall,” said Charlie Gott, a Miller Hall resident and undeclared freshman. “It’s almost like a fire hazard.”
However, Burton added students who live in the older dorms reap benefits in other ways.
“When you move into an older building, you pay cheaper rent,” said Burton. ?
Staten said there are alternatives to these older, more traditional buildings, such as the University of Louisville Properties, which are maintained and leased by the private company Education Realty Trust Inc.
Those residence halls include Bettie Johnson, Kurz, Billy Minardi and Community Park.? U of L Resident Student Association’s National Conference Coordinator Alex Frommeyer spoke highly of the ULP halls and said he looks forward to being a Resident Assistant at one of the properties this fall.?
Frommeyer also said that, despite the structural problems of some buildings on campus, he feels campus housing is the prudent choice for students.
“I think it is wise to take advantage of the features of on-campus housing,” Frommeyer, who is currently in Kurz Hall, said, “if for no other reason than the location.”?
