Construction delays on university apartments in Westwood
continue to cause problems for UCLA Housing, which estimates it
could lose millions of dollars in rent this year as units remain
unfinished.
Housing Director Michael Foraker said the staff assumed the
Weyburn Terrace housing project in the Village would be complete by
the beginning of the school year when his agency drafted its annual
budget.
Foraker said Housing faces a revenue shortfall as high as $5
million this year, as contractors lengthen their construction
timelines, partly due to problems securing materials like concrete,
plywood and steel.
The department’s total annual revenue is approximately
$138 million.
“The contractors still can’t tell us for certain
when the construction will be finished. … It’s very
frustrating for our students and very frustrating for our
staff,” he said.
Monthly rent at Weyburn ranges from $850 to $875 per person, and
Foraker said Housing factored that money into its budget.
But since just three of seven Weyburn Terrace complexes are
habitable, only about 500 of 1,387 beds planned in the project for
graduate students have been filled.
According to the latest information available from
Housing’s Web site, the opening dates for some Weyburn
buildings run into January. Until Housing staff knows when students
can move in, Foraker said it is impossible to calculate for damage
in revenues.
The budget shortfall will not lead directly to rent increases,
and the university will mitigate losses using a number of methods,
he said.
UCLA will ask contractors for reimbursements for delays
unrelated to weather or other uncontrollable factors.
Postponing the hire of custodians, maintenance and office
workers until buildings are complete will also help balance the
budget.
Still, the gap is significant, and money will come out of a
reserve fund allotted for major maintenance to “take care of
unanticipated shortfalls,” Foraker said.
Monetary issues are not Weyburn Terrace’s only plagues,
though, with students complaining in recent months about problems
with their finished apartments.
Foraker mentioned that several residences in Palm Court, part of
the housing complex, flooded recently due to plumbing problems. He
further stated that some apartments in Magnolia Court, also in
Weyburn, were damaged by rain because the temporary tarp
contractors put on roofs in place of seismic joints did not prevent
leaking.
“We talk about it every weekend ““ make the entire
job site water-tight. We don’t want students’
apartments to get flooded,” Foraker said.
Adam Langenbacher, a graduate student in biology, said his
first-floor room in Palm Court flooded twice, with the most recent
incident in early October.
Both times, water seeped into his room from between the wall and
carpet, and repair workers attributed the problem to a broken water
heater, Langenbacher said.
“In my bathroom, it was bad. There was standing water on
the ground,” Langenbacher said, adding that the second time,
the university placed him in a guest house for about a week as
dehumidifiers dried the carpet in his room.
His roommate M.K. Asante Jr., who is studying film, said,
“We had to call them at least four or five times ““ for
just little things.”
Asante Jr. said the apartment has had various ailments, from
windows and closet doors that didn’t shut to misplaced tiles
in the bathroom, and an Internet connection which needed to be
rewired.
Both roommates said Housing staff were sympathetic to each
problem. But shaking his head, Langenbacher said he wouldn’t
be surprised if his room flooded again.
Foraker said contractors, pressed for time, made mistakes,
including hiring inexperienced electricians whose work had to be
redone once they discovered wiring did not function properly.
“Frankly, it’s been a very difficult process. This
put us in a very awkward position with our students,” he
said.
Shirley Wong, associate director of university apartments, said
she believes Weyburn housing will “absolutely” be in
demand when it’s done. She said students tell her they
appreciate amenities like dishwashers and the proximity to
campus.
Weyburn’s wait list, full at the start of the school year,
has dwindled as students unable to wait for its completion signed
contracts with private landlords.
Foraker said as units in Weyburn become livable, Housing hopes
to offer spots to students on other university apartment wait lists
““ and to start bringing in more rent.