South campus facelift more than skin deep

UNM’s Student Family Housing facility is undergoing some major renovations and management restructuring.

Associate Director of Facilities Brian Ward said that aside from new paint and general maintenance when residents move out, the facility on South Campus has not been renovated in more than 30 years.

“We really wanted to bring the student housing apartments up to the same level as the main campus housing,” Ward said.

The new renovation projects to the Family Housing complex began in fall 2009 and have so far included fixing roofs on all the buildings, bringing the fire alarm systems up to code, re-paving and striping the parking lots and re-surfacing the basketball courts.
 
So far, the project has cost $1.4 million. Ward said all the money for the renovations came from student rent dollars.

“It was entirely funded by the rent money from students living on the main campus and in the Family Housing,” Ward said. “And our goal, of course, is still to keep rent rates as low as possible.”

David Elder, the lead facilities services technician for the Family Housing complex, said the renovations really needed to happen.
“A lot of these apartments have gotten a bit neglected, and it takes a lot of work to keep them running,” Elder said. “We want residents to have a nice place to live.”

Ward said the renovations slated to occur now consist of technological changes throughout the complex.
 
“We are currently in the bidding process for a TV, Internet and phone service for all the apartments,” Ward said. “Right now, it’s up to individual residents to find their own providers, but we are hoping to get a discount from a company providing TV, Internet and phone to all the apartments. The residents have been overwhelmingly in favor of this plan.”

Elder also has some improvements he would like to see happen this upcoming year.
 
He leads a team of four maintenance workers and said they have their hands full keeping up on the maintenance for the whole facility.

“As part of the improvements going on here, we are hoping to hire a company to take care of the grounds,” he said. “Right now, we just have one guy doing the (grounds) job, and he kills himself trying to get it all done.” 

The improvements to the Student Family Housing complex have not all been cosmetic. As part of the renovation process, several improvements have been made to the complex’s internal management structure as well.

Ward said Teresa Ortiz was appointed Student Family Housing coordinator in order to promote a better staffing structure, a sense of community and more activities for the residents. Ortiz is one of the most experienced Resident Education staff members on UNM’s main campus, he said.
 
The coordinator’s responsibilities will include implementing programs and activities, developing and helping residents get to know each other.

“In addition to the renovations that have already been made, the advisers and I would really like to see some nice benches and tables put outside to encourage the residents to come outside and talk to each other and create a little community,” Ortiz said.

Four Community Resident Advisers have also been commissioned to help Ortiz carry out her goals.

“I really want to see a more programmatic effort being made there,” Ortiz said. “I want to make it a place for residents to learn, to have fun and to meet each other.”