Last night, the Housing office sent residents of East Campus this uplifting message:

Dear East Campus Residents,

As you settle in after Spring Break, we would like to update you again on the progress of the courtyard construction work in East Campus. A substantial portion of the work is set to be completed as of this Wednesday, March 14, 2012.  We are happy to announce that this means pedestrian access between the Walsh lobby and the Nevils/LXR buildings will be restored as of 12 noon Wednesday.

This means that as of noon Wednesday, access to LXR and interior Nevils apartments will be through the normal doors–Walsh lobby or 35th St LXR lobby. The exterior security doors on N St and 36th St (temporarily accessible during construction) will be closed permanently and re-alarmed to be used in emergencies only. Handicap access to the complex will be available through the Walsh lobby.

While this means you may access the buildings as normal, there are portions of work still ongoing.  Continue to expect construction noise and work as these remaining projects are completed. Parts of the courtyard will remain fenced off throughout, and intermittent disruptions to pedestrian walkways may be necessary. We will provide updates on the progress of the remaining work as it is available to us.

The chiller, which operates the air conditioning for LXR, Nevils and Walsh is being replaced. This project is expected to be completed by early May. In the meantime, there is no air conditioning in these residences halls. The heat needs to remain on in the building, as during this time of year there can be great fluctuations in temperature. We recognize this can be uncomfortable for periods of time. We thank you for your patience as we complete this project.

Thank you for your continued cooperation with the Nevils project work.

Sincerely,

Offices of Student Housing

It’s lovely how Housing waits until the middle of the last paragraph to tell the residents of LXR, Nevils and Walsh that they will have no air conditioning until early May. But hey, at least East Campus will still have heating during one of the most unseasonably warm periods in recent D.C. history.

If the ANC was smart about getting students to live on campus, they’d sponsor a crash construction program to get this done in a week. Or buy East Campus residents giant fans.

A power outage in East Campus that began this afternoon has yet to be fixed, according to East Campus Hall Director Billy Colona.

“At this time, neither I nor Housing have any information on the restoration of power or what actually caused it,” Colona wrote in an email to Nevils residents at 4 p.m.

The University has taken steps to help students during the outage, which has coincided with D.C.’s first major snow storm of the year. Residents can pick up flashlights—one per apartment—at the East Campus RHO or through their Resident Assistants. Facilities plans to install a light tower in the LXR courtyard this evening.

In a later email, Colona suggested that residents visit Sellinger Lounge, Leo’s, Lauinger Library, and Yates Field House to enjoy light and heat.

Freezing your ass off because of the outage? Looking for a warm place to stay? Let us know in the comments.

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The Department of Public Safety has increased East Campus patrols after a student was almost abducted early on Sunday morning.

“We are stepping up patrols of the East campus area in search of the suspects,” Joseph Smith, associate director of DPS, wrote in an email. “I think this case demonstrates how important it is to walk in groups or pair whenever possible and to report suspicious activity to the police.”

DPS has also contacted local colleges to determine if any similar incidents have occurred on other campuses.

“To my knowledge, nothing of this sort has occurred in recent years within the campus vicinity,” Smith wrote.

DPS and the Metropolitan Police Department are conducting an ongoing investigation into the crime.

Looks like our neighbors are tired of hearing about how awesome our slices of Philly P’s are. In response to a large number of neighbor complaints, DPS officers have been patrolling the Prospect, 35 Street, and 36 Street corridors to crack down on late-night student noise.

Denise Cunningham, President of the Citizens Association of Georgetown, first referenced the patrols in the May 2009 CAG newsletter [PDF]:

Community representatives meet with Georgetown personnel monthly and this topic has long been on the agenda. It was also discussed at great length with President Jack DeGoia at a recent meeting where very candid and helpful dialogue took place. The topics at the top of the list are student housing, student behavior and transportation.

A very positive recent result from these meetings is the installation of roaming Department of Public Safety officers on the Prospect, 35th and 36th street corridors to shut down late night noise from students making their way back to campus.

In an e-mail, Associate Director of the Department of Public Safety Joseph Smith confirmed that DPS officers have been patrolling all areas of West Georgetown that are University-owned.

Smith wrote that when the officers come across students being too loud, they will “diplomatically seek their compliance.”  He also said that officers do not routinely issue citations for noise, but may take down a student’s information “when appropriate.”