Creative expression on elevator doors will return to the residence halls after an agreement was made between the Inter-Residence Hall Association and the Department of Residence.In the fall of 1999, the Department of Residence decided to paint over art on the elevator doors due to maintenance complaints, said Virginia Arthur, associate director of residence. She said elevator companies had reported that paint dripping down the elevator shafts created mechanical problems.However, after several student complaints, Arthur said the department decided that residents benefit from elevator designs.”We’ve seen that the more ownership a residence has of their environment,” she said, “the better they’ll take care of their space.”Arthur said the elevator design dispute only spotlighted Larch Hall because of “a particular design that was not responded to very well.” The elevator door was painted to resemble a Jack Daniels whiskey bottle.IRHA President Paul Duncan said that while he was president of Emerson House in Larch Hall last year, he campaigned against the banishment of elevator door designs.”Last year, our elevator design was deemed controversial,” said Duncan, junior in transportation and logistics. “We had held it very sacred.”He said the Emerson House door was eventually painted over when the Department of Residence came up with a “blanket policy.” The policy stated that all high-rise residence hall elevator doors would be painted white. “When I joined IRHA, we were experiencing difficulty with communicating with the DOR,” Duncan said. “The policy never came up again until this semester.”Amy Rogers, resident assistant for Cessna House in Larch Hall, said she thinks students will be celebrating the return of elevator designs.”I know of some people who have been asking about it — they will be very excited,” she said.

Rogers, senior in mathematics, said her floor’s doors are white now, but she said residents already are suggesting ideas for a new design. “We’ve probably already had 12 submitted, and we’ve already voted and chosen the top two [designs],” she said. “We’ll have to OK it with the hall director, and then we’ll order the paint.”Arthur said the Department of Residence will have some control over the elevator’s design.”The content on the doors has to be approved by the hall director,” she said. “They can’t be controversial in nature or [have] alcohol-related references.”Duncan said he was happy with the department’s decision to give the elevator door designs back to the students. “I think it was that both sides were able to come together,” he said. “The DOR did an exceptional job with communicating with IRHA to get this done.”