Jefferson Hall residents experience laundry struggles

By TYLER POSPISIL

The University of Mary Washington seems to be dealing with an ongoing problem regarding the lack of washing machines and dryers in Jefferson Hall. The residence hall has only three washing machines and only three dryers, despite having about 82 students occupying the residence hall. In Eagle Landing, there are laundry machines on every floor, some floors even have more washers and dryers than Jefferson Hall has all together.

In the past, Jefferson Hall was a freshmen residence hall and therefore offered doubles. It now houses upperclassmen and only offers singles instead. Jefferson residents have been dealing with this problem for quite some time.

For a portion of this year and most of last year, one washing machine broken, which inconvenienced students even more. Many students were forced to come to terms with having only two working washing machines.

Last year, the basement of Jefferson was renovated, cutting the laundry room in half to create a kitchen space for students. While many students found the kitchen to be useful, it also led to a shortage of laundry machine space. Sean Kinslow, senior business major, lives in Jefferson and has been for three out of his four years.

“Machine No. 2 was broken for a good portion of the year, it had standing water inside of it for months and smelt terrible,” Kinslow said.

On occasion students’ clothes would still be damp after having put them in the dryer. If they wanted what they paid for they would have to spend more money for a second go-around. Some students would leave their clothes out to dry which took hours.

On average, the total time needed to use both laundry machines, takes about an hour and a half. Abigail Whittington, junior English major, lives in Jefferson Hall and has a lot to say about the situation at hand.

“It’s extremely inconvenient and frustrating. Sometimes I avoid [doing] laundry until the last possible second because it’s such a hassle,” Whittington said. “If they added two more or so I wouldn’t complain.”

By visiting the website, umw.esuds.net, students can check the availability of laundry machines in residence halls. Whittington uses the website whenever she is about to put a load in. The website also notifies students about how much time is left on each machine.

Abigail talked about how these resources are impractical if the core problem is coming from a lack of laundry machines. Since the demand for the machines is so high due to this shortage, everyone is constantly checking the app. “I check the website to see if anything is available, but by that time someone already beat me to it,” Whittington said.

On the website, Eagle Landing is broken into two sections, Eagle Landing North and Eagle Landing South. It says that all together, Eagle Landing has 40 washers and 40 dryers.

Although Eagle Landing is heavily populated compared to Jefferson Hall, students can agree that some of those 40 washers and dryers in Eagle would be put to better use in Jefferson, which as of now houses only three of each.

The website has every single residence hall from Alvey to Willard. There is a convenient option to sign up to get notified by entering your email, although it is unclear if the website emails you or sends a text message. The website is very simple and easy to use. If a person is unsure how exactly the website works, there is a FAQ button on the top right corner that explains everything and makes the process easier.

Courtland Lyle, senior geology and biology double major, has lived in Jefferson Hall for two years and she says, “I do agree that there is a shortage, I just don’t know where we would put more… perhaps on the fourth floor.”