The cost to be comfortable has gotten more expensive for students in Iowa State’s residence halls.

Although the temperature outside is not sweltering hot like it has been in past years, students in some of the residence halls still have to cope with having no air conditioning.

Gary Schwartz, the assistant director of residence, said there is a $25 increase this year in rooms equipped with air conditioners.

Schwartz said students who lived in the residence halls during the summer had to pay extra for air but did not have to pay extra in the fall and spring.

He said the issue was really brought to the forefront during the heat wave at the start of last fall semester. The students who did not have air thought it was unfair to pay the same price as those who did have air.

Currently, Maple-Willow-Larch Halls and parts of Friley Hall have rooms with air conditioning. The four houses in Friley that do not have air are: Palmer, O’Bryan, Hutton and Dodds.

“It really doesn’t include the cost for original installation,” Schwartz said. “That was done a long time ago. It does reflect the charge for utilities for those rooms.”

Megan Carstens, a freshman in business, lives on Palmer in Friley Hall. She has two fans to keep her and her roommate cool and is just one of many students in the residence halls who does not have the luxury of air conditioning.

“We have no circulation in the room even when the windows are open,” Carstens said. “It is so hard to sleep at night because it gets so hot in our room.”

Carstens said she is willing to pay the extra money to get air. “I wouldn’t mind paying for air, because it gets so hot in our room,” she said.

Norma Leo, a sophomore in agriculture business, lives in Lorch-Russell House in Friley Hall. She is just one student who has to pay extra to receive air.

“I’m really glad we have air,” Leo said.

“I just wish everyone could have air. I don’t think anyone should have to pay extra.”

Leo did not have to pay extra for air last year when she lived in Friley. She feels students should not have to pay extra for air conditioning. “The air conditioner is in the room,” she said. “It should be included with the cost of the room.”

Schwartz said there are plans that include installing air conditioners in all the residence halls, eventually.

“As we look down the road, we will add more air conditioning,” Schwartz said.

Schwartz said they are in the process of beginning to develop a facilities renovating plan for the building, but they will have to get permission from the state Board of Regents to get a study done for a facilities audit.

“Within the next two years I would like to have some significant renovations occurring,” Schwartz said.