Alabama and Harris Residence Halls will undergo renovations during the course of the next two years.
Renovations will include upgrades to the infrastructure and interior of the residence halls.
Andrea Trinklein, the executive director of Residence Life and Housing, said some renovations will include the additions of private bathrooms and study lounges.
Trinklein said the project will occur in two phases, with the first phase taking place this summer and the second phase in summer 2014. Confining the renovations to the summer will allow the residence halls to remain open during the academic year and maximize the number of students that can live on campus, according to Trinklein.
"We have to be strategic with planning and make the most of the summer months," Trinklein said. "Our goal is that we need to maintain a certain number of beds available for our students."
Trinklein said that the specifics regarding the upgrades for each building will be identified in thecoming months.
Trinklein added that campus buildings are regularly scheduled for improvements based on their age and condition.
Since Alabama and Harris Halls are relatively old compared to most of Emory's other residence halls, Trinklein said there was an impetus to make Alabama and Harris more modern and efficient.
In addition, Trinklein said she wanted to ensure that facilities remain attractive and desirable to students.
"Things like [upgrades] make the environment better," Trinklein said. "If we can continue to make improvements in the living facilities, the students would enjoy it more."
In terms of suggestions for upgrades, Alabama Hall resident and College sophomore Kristen Wilty cited a lack of adequate spaces in Alabama for students to study or work on homework.
"It's kind of inconvenient that we only have one study lounge and that it's upstairs," Wilty said.
Wilty also said the open placement of trash bins in the hallways of Alabama have created an unpleasant odor. She proposed the implementation of a room specially designated for trash bins, similar to what newer residence halls have.
"Any improvement would be great, but I don't think there's anything that's drastically necessary," Wilty said.
– Contact Harmeet Kaur at
hbhagra@emory.edu
