University purchases Pacific Inn over break

By Jessica Alway

Santa Clara University formally purchased the property previously known as the Pacific Inn on Dec. 31, 2001. The three-story building, located on the Alameda, across the street from Sobrato, is now an official part of campus.

"I have had my eye on the inn ever since I first started working here," said Housing Director Linda Franke. "The location is so ideal. It is practically on campus."

Faced with multiple overcrowding issues during this academic year, the housing department initiated negotiations in mid-September of last year. Once it was apparent there would not be enough housing for students returning from abroad and for additional international students, the department decided to move forward with the process.

The vice president of business and finance, and the University provost and president all met multiple times to arrange the terms of the contract. In October, 20 students previously housed in the Mariani Inn moved into the second floor of the Pacific Inn in an act of good faith that the facility would be bought shortly. At the end of December, details were finalized as the university paid $6.5 million for the Pacific Inn.

"This figure doesn't include the expense of the renovations necessary to make the inn more like a residence hall," said Harry Fong, assistant vice president of finance. "We are still in the process of developing what these final changes might be as well as the respective cost."

The investment also excluded certain items within the hotel. All the beds, tables and televisions were removed from the rooms in order to make them more comparable to those in other residence halls. While the mattresses were given to the previous owner of the inn, the televisions and desks can be spotted at other locations on campus such as other residence halls. Three of the televisions mounted in The Bronco came from the Pacific Inn.

"All and all, it wasn't a bad conversion," said Franke. "Even though it was kind of a rushed time frame, I think we did a good job. Hotels have basically the same concept as residence halls anyway."

On Jan. 6, about 50 students, including those returning from trips abroad, international transfers, and others who previously lived off campus, joined the current Pacific Inn residents who moved from the Mariani Inn last year. Three individuals were also hired to serve as Community Facilitators. Carlos Bobadilla and Charlie Cownie are both university employees who worked as Resident Advisors prior to their graduation, while the third, Emily Adams, is currently a senior at Santa Clara.

"I got the job purely by luck," said Adams. "I just heard that there was going to be a new residence hall, so I called the housing department to see if there were any positions open. I happened to be the first person to call so it all worked out. And I am so happy I am here. I am really enjoying all the people I am living with. Most people have been wonderful and very enthusiastic."

But since school has only been in session for a little more than a week, the residents haven't had much of chance to get to know each other. The hotel's doors also help to propitiate the problem. They contain a mechanism which causes them to close automatically, thus making it impossible for the inn to engage in the open door policy used in many other dorms. But most floors are planning social functions, such as pizza parties, to help eliminate the problem.

Yet these efforts cannot change the physical aspects of the facility, and so it still largely looks and feels like a hotel. The doors are thick, polished wood with large brass room numbers. The old automatic locks still hang on the door. Red and white striped wallpaper decorates the walls, along with generic floral paintings.

Despite the untraditional atmosphere, the 70 students who reside in the inn seem to enjoy their living space.

"I like living here," said junior Joseph Moore. "I lived in Sanfillipo last year and I think this place is a little nicer. I get my own bathroom and I always have a close place to park."

All of the rooms do contain private bathrooms and some are equipped with kitchen units.

Roommates Brian Resz and Kris Nostrom, both juniors, agree with Moore's praise.

"It is pretty cool here," said Nostrom. "We have air conditioning and a stove, which is better than living in the dorms. I wish we had Internet connections though."

Other residents echoed their complaints and the housing department says they are working on the problem.

"We still have a lot of work to do on the Inn," said Franke. "We need to bring in the Internet connections, links to the university cable television and connected phone lines. We are also hiring desk receptionists and taking care of the other secretarial problems. The sign needs to be removed so the community understands that this is now a dorm and not a hotel."

In fact, past visitors of the Pacific Inn have actually come in looking for a room to rent within the past week.