In order to better serve our students and move toward a more environmentally-sustainable future, the University Student Union (USU) underwent several facility and maintenance updates over the summer.
The Escalator
You might have noticed that the escalators have been down since the beginning of the semester. Well, there is a good reason for that. Over the summer, the USU’s maintenance team came to the conclusion that the step chain, the part of the machine that keeps the steps moving, has come to the end of its lifespan and needed to be replaced. Based on the recommendation of the escalator service company, the escalator has been locked as a safety precaution until repairs can be completed. The USU Board of Trustees (USUBOT) requested, voted on and passed a recommendation to replace the steps, install new step chains and to install new handrails for both the up and down escalators. All repairs and replacements should be completed by early October!
Patrons with a disability will still be able to access the fourth floor of the USU using the elevator located on each floor of the USU.
Our Sustainable Second Floor
If you’ve been spending some time in the USU, you might have noticed significantly sustainable changes on the second floor: new hydration stations at the east end and in the main lobby of the USU and our new water-saving toilet systems!
In addition to our bathrooms being painted, caulked, sealed and snaked as part of our annual preventative maintenance plan, the flush valves on all toilets on the second floor have been replaced with a dual option valve with one option for lighter flushes and one for heavier flushes. Overall, with these changes, the USU will be saving at least 1.1 gallons of water per flush, making us one flush closer to a more sustainable USU!
Technology Updates in Meeting Rooms
Do you have events or meetings in the USU? Well, if your event will be held in USU 205 or 304, you’ll see our brand new smart monitors instead of the older projector models. In USU 205, projectors and screens have been replaced by a smart monitor and in USU 304, there is a new touchscreen smart monitor.
The Food Court
The facilities team has also spent all summer reupholstering the booths and the seats of the chairs in the food court on the second floor of the USU. Our team also spent the summer repainting and updating the color in the food courts in order to be more in line with the university’s colors. GO BEACH!
