Housing and Dining Programs and 2FIX recently repaired multiple facility concerns in Roper Hall that residents have had since the hall opened on Sept. 7.
The residents of Roper Hall experienced problems dealing with:
• Laundry machines • Microwaves • Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning units • Plumbing
Laura Beck, a freshman in the School of Communication and a resident of Roper Hall, said students have been reporting most of their issues in Roper to 2FIX, AU’s central point of contact for facility issues.
Some problems took longer than others to be fixed because they had manufacturing issues that 2FIX could not repair, said Sam Yankson, Building Maintenance Supervisor.
Some HVAC units leaked in a couple of student rooms, but the problem is common and Facilities Management staff quickly repaired the problem, according to Yankson.
Roper residents informed Housing and Dining on Aug. 18 that the laundry machines were not working, so the office informed the laundry contractor, Caldwell and Gregory, about the problem, according to Chris Moody, executive director of Housing and Dining Programs.
Caldwell and Gregory found the issues were related to the eSuds card reader program and campus IT network connections.
Furthermore, there were no microwaves in Roper when the hall opened.
“The microwave orders for Roper were placed on time for the building’s opening but were not received due to a shipping error by the microwave manufacturer,” Moody said. “They have been received and installed since the first week of September.”
The single stall bathroom on the first floor of Roper was out of order from Sept. 13 to 16 because there was a leak under the tile floor.
Students have also reported concerns about the automatic sinks not turning off after being used. Those concerns have been forwarded to the sink contractors, Yankson said.
Roper was previously the building for the Department of Economics. The conversion of the building to a residence hall was managed and supervised by the University Architect’s office, The Eagle previously reported.
Construction began in March of this year and was supposed to be ready for student housing in August.
Although many problems have arisen, students like Caroline Marsh, a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences, still like living in Roper.
“I love living in Roper because of the smaller community feel and the cleanliness of the whole building,” Marsh said. “I would definitely say that experiencing a few minor difficulties is worth getting to live in a newly renovated hall and getting new furniture.”
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