The crash and burn of Wall Street and the 20 percent dip in the University's endowment will mean a similar meltdown in the ambitious plans for New Campus.

And since the construction of this third campus has almost certainly been tabled for now, it is important in the meantime that the University concentrate on improving the existing facilities on Central so that the present needs of students are not forgotten. In recent months, Campus Council, Residence Life and Housing Services and Dean of Undergraduate Education Steve Nowicki have been making commendable preliminary plans to make incremental improvements to Central, although there is much more to be done.

Foremost in this discussion is to actually plan Central Campus in the way that West Campus is planned. Improved, flexible and quality housing on New Campus was supposed to replace the current housing on Central, sending the haphazardly constructed apartments to their appropriate fate-demolition.

Without this new housing, however, Central will remain in general the way it is for many years to come. For this reason, the University should improve the living conditions on Central and not dismiss Central as merely temporary housing that will be abandoned.

Of greatest concern is the stunning lack of student services on Central that students living on East and West campuses have enjoyed for years.

First, there are only two e-Print locations on Central. More e-Print stations would bring Central on par with East and West, where many residence halls have their own e-Print machines. It would also add convenience and increase safety, as students would not have to walk as far late at night in order to retrieve their papers.

A similar argument can be made for increasing the number of laundry facilities on Central.

Moreover, athletic and recreation facilities on Central are either lacking or in disrepair. For instance, as Campus Council has recently recognized, Central does have tennis courts and basketball courts, but these are badly in need of resurfacing and a general upgrade.

More importantly, there is no indoor workout facility that at all resembles Brodie on East or Wilson on West. It would only be reasonable to add a small recreation center on Central to accommodate the many students who live there.

Perhaps the greatest concern of students living on Central is the lack of a centralized, quality dining establishment. Grace's Cafe is not located near the heart of Central's residential area, and the limited offering of Uncle Harry's just does not do the job.

What's more, the addition of a restaurant to Central would greatly improve the quality of life there. Although students who live on Central enjoy the independence an apartment provides them, they often note a feeling of isolation and a lack of community. A central gathering space for the Central Campus community could help to ameliorate this problem as well as save students looking for a bite to eat the trek to West.

We are past the point when improvements to Central should be discussed in the abstract. RLHS should partner with Nowicki and CC to implement these improvements as soon as possible. RLHS's collaboration with the Office of Information Technology over Winter Break to install wireless routers in Central apartments was heartening, and such small yet meaningful changes should continue.

Central Campus is here, and it's here to stay. So for the sake of current and future Blue Devils who will call its apartments home, it's time for an upgrade.