The Class of 2019 now has one less reason to sweat about its first day at Duke.
The University is installing new window and floor air-conditioning units this summer in forms previously without air conditioning—including Alspaugh, Brown, East House, Epworth, Gilbert-Addams, Jarvis, Pegram, Southgate and Wilson. Housing, Dining and Residence Life made the decision to go forward with the project in part due to student requests, said Andy Beville, director of facilities planning and operations.
“This is in response to many complaints that we received from students," Beville said. "We needed to explore how we could make the freshman experience more comfortable during the August, September and even October months."
Installation began in early June and is expected to end Aug. 15, in time for freshman move-in, Sarah Burdick, director of administration and special projects, wrote in an email.
HDRL wanted to improve indoor air quality and make the residence halls safer and more comfortable for residents, capitalizing on the opportunity to do so using air-conditioning floor-unit technology, Beville explained in an email.
“The issue was how do we find a solution? What was the pathway that would satisfy the student experience and satisfy what the facilities could handle?” Beville said.
Floor units differ from window units, which are bulky and can damage a building’s infrastructure over time, he noted. The floor-unit technology also means the units burn off condensation when transforming warm air into cool air, which allows them to respond to the medical and air temperature needs of Duke students without causing long-term damage to the building, Beville added.
Ultimately, Duke plans to install a centralized air system for all East Campus dormitories, but that project is several years away from completion, Beville said. In the meantime, more temporary solutions—like the floor units that are being implemented—may be used until central air can be installed in all of the dormitories.
The plan to bring centralized air-conditioning to East Campus has been in the works for quite some time, as last summer crews finished Campus Drive renovations that included installing pipes capable of bringing more chilled water to East Campus. The project began in 2012 and continued during the Winter and Summer breaks that followed to allow East campus-wide air conditioning to become more of a realistic possibility.
Natalia Espinosa, an incoming freshman from Dallas, said she was happy to hear that every dormitory will have some form of air-conditioning come Fall 2015.
“I know Durham can get pretty hot, especially in August when we move in,” she said. “I’m glad I’ll be able to start off not having to worry about the heat too much.”
Some students expressed concern, however, that the renovation will eliminate the bonding experience dormitories without air-conditioning fostered by encouraging students to socialize in air-conditioned common rooms.
Julia Medine, a sophomore who lived in Gilbert-Addoms as a freshman, said that although the lack of air conditioning made it difficult to sleep at night, it did create a community in the common room.
“It definitely made us spend less time in our rooms, and in that sense, we probably bonded more than we would have with AC," she said.
Editor's note: The Chronicle spoke to Beville on the phone and via email.
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