Jason Mann

Even though students were gone all summer, the Department of Residential Life stayed busy.

Every residence hall at SDSU had some type of facelift during the summer. “Improvements are continually being discussed and planned,” said Michael Kervin, director of Residential Life. He said most ideas for renovations came from discussions with student groups like the Residence Hall Association, various hall governments and resident assistants. The department also receives input from staff members who notice areas that need improvement, such as new roofs or mechanical equipment.

Kervin said the bathrooms in both Mathews Hall and Pierson Hall were “totally renovated,” a continuation of a project Residential Life has been working on for four years. The showers now have areas for students to dry off and partition doors instead of curtains. Pierson and Mathews were also made compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act and had ceramic tile walls and floors and unit ventilators installed to improve air circulation in both buildings.

“I love it,” Asha Evjen, a sophomore nursing major who lives in Mathews, said. “It’s awesome. There are separate shower stalls and it’s spaced out nicely. Overall? it’s a great improvement to what they had previously.”

“The showers are really clean, and the added privacy with the actual walls is nice,” said Matt Evenson, a freshman music merchandising major who lives in Pierson.

According to Kervin, laundry facilities were also improved. Each wing of Pierson now has its own laundry room, with two washing machines and two dryers in it. The washing machines in Hansen Hall, which has had Pierson’s laundry system in place for some time, were replaced.

“We needed them. I haven’t used them yet, but they look really nice and they should hold more clothes than the old ones did,” said Kate Lindblom, a sophomore nursing major who lives in Hansen.

The remaining halls had laundry-view systems added; these allow students to check machine availability online through hobodough.com.

Kervin said that the lobbies of both Young Hall and Binnewies Hall “were totally gutted and renovated.” Each lobby received new flooring, ceilings, air-conditioning, blinds, desks and furniture. In all of the halls, each dayroom was furnished with leather seating and new study tables. Carpet was installed in some of the dayrooms.

Residential Life didn’t focus all their attention on the inside of the halls, Kervin said. Landscaping improvements were completed around each of the residence halls, including new benches and mulching around bike racks. A few of the bigger projects included upgrades for the Caldwell Hall courtyard and the east side of Pierson, as well as the addition of a new ramp and deck at Hansen.

The buildings were not the only improvements this summer. Fun will now be easier to find for residents; new sand volleyball courts were added in the Larson Loop, between Young and Binnewies and between Berg Hall and Bailey Hall. A new half-court basketball court was also built near Grove Hall and the court at Hansen was resurfaced.

Residential Life plans to continue working on the landscaping projects and will begin to plan projects for next summer.

#1.883383:1478976072.jpg:grovebasketball2.jpg:A new half-court basketball court was added to campus near Grove Hall. It is one of the improvements made by Residental Life.: