Residents Surprised by Maintenance Workers

By Anayo Awuzie

Senior Amber Larkin was unaware that a maintenance worker was coming to her apartment while she was in bed in her University Villas apartment on Campbell when she heard someone bang on the door, unlock the door, call out to ask if anyone was home and proceed to use the water dispenser in her kitchen.

"My thoughts went from wondering who was in my apartment to how they got in and why they were using things. I was actually afraid so I didn't look outside until the person left," she said.

When the man left, she went to see if anything was taken, and when she saw that the living room was still intact, Larkin finally felt at ease.

The housing office and University Operations declined to comment on the matter.

Daniel Schniedermeier, Area Coordinator in the Office of Residence Life,  stated that preventative maintenance was being conducted on behalf of the (Housing) office. A technician for Flagship Maintenance was securing the water hose found at the back of the refrigerator to ensure it was flowing.

Junior Kate Durant said she was never notified when she came back to her dorm from class and maintenance was just leaving. She said that she was completely startled when she saw the maintenance worker and did not know why she was not informed of maintenance taking place in her apartment.

Desbelet Berhe, McLaughlin Community Facilitator,  and Jessica Zigterman, University Villas Neighborhood Representative, said that it is unacceptable that this is happening in student residences.

Residential maintenance is standard around the dorms. The university protocol is to notify resident directors and community facilitators at least a week in advance who then forward the message that there will be maintenance happening within the building. This is to keep the lines of communication with administration and students open and also to prevent situations like what occurred with Larkin and Durant.

"I guess my concern was not being told what was happening," said Durant. "That would have solved pretty much everything. Imagine your city sending maintenance to your house with the permission to enter after a certain amount of time of not answering the door. And that's without prior notification. That's not something that can be seen as okay."

Contact Anayo Awuzie at aawuzie@scu.edu or call (408) 554-4852.