Dripping pipes. Exposed electrical wires. Chipping paint. Chemical fumes. Spider webs. Missing floor tiles and missing baseboards. Loose bricks. Dust, spiders and rats.
Those are just some of the ways to describe the Studio Arts Building, formerly known as the Old Engineering Shop.
Break-ins. Robbery. Vandalism. Destruction. No security system. Open and unlocked doors 24/7.
Those are some others. This isn’t on the University’s campus, right? Wrong. And if my description so far hasn’t convinced you that our fellow students in Art and Design need help, keep reading.
The Studio Arts Building — which comprises seven buildings — is part of the College of Art and Design. It currently serves as a sub-par home for senior painting studios, ceramics workshops, print making studios and sculpture studios.
While the leisure arts studios in the Student Union have recently been beautifully renovated, the Studio Arts Building has found itself in a state of extreme disrepair.
Moreover, the building, erected in the 1920s, has been on the University’s renovation list for 20 years, said Director of Facility Development Emmett David.
Fortunately, contractors should begin bidding on renovating the building, and the project is slated to be finished and ready for students by summer 2014, said Rod Parker, director of the School of Art.
But Parker also said the building has gone through this same process two or three times before.
With the building’s track record, you can be skeptical the renovations will actually be completed on time, and students aren’t happy with the current condition and safety of the building. They’re finally speaking out.
“I pay tuition for that space in [the Studio Arts Building],” said painting and drawing senior Ashley LeBlanc. “And I’m paying for nothing.”
LeBlanc, who has had a studio in the building for a year, said she and other students have been afraid to speak out about the building for fear that being vocal may hurt their grades.
One of her biggest grievances was with the building’s safety.
She described numerous instances where people have broken into the building — an easy task with unlocked doors — and stolen electronics and paintings. She also complained people have destroyed expensive paintings by slicing through them with razor blades.
In one instance, LeBlanc said she was the only person in the building around 1:30 a.m. when she heard police yelling, “Get on the f—ing ground,” outside of her window. Then she saw a man running, brick in hand, suddenly fall to the ground and begin shaking while officers attempted to apprehend the man.
The man had been tasered, and it turns out, he was using bricks to prop doors open, not knowing that the facility is always unlocked.
LeBlanc said she has not painted in the building since that night because she doesn’t feel safe.
Who can blame her? As far as security goes, there is none.
“We discourage people from working alone in the buildings,” Parker said when asked about safety. Sounds like the buddy system.
Health problems were LeBlanc’s other concern.
In a walk through the building, she showed Reveille reporters the terrible conditions.
First, her studio has a PVC pipe that releases chemicals into a drain below her sink. Across the room, nearly overflowing chemical disposal containers. One read, “Empty every night.” The other, “Waste Flammable.”
No custodians can be found.
We walked through the halls, witnessing the graffiti. We saw pipes sagging. We saw the walls, the paint curled up and chipping. We saw the light switch to the painting studio, which was actually a huge breaker box.
While Parker said the building meets health and safety standards every year, LeBlanc said the inspectors usually walk through “shaking their heads” at the condition.
With a building in such bad shape on campus, action needs to be taken.
Parker said adding health and safety measures now doesn’t make sense financially since renovations are in the future, but students can’t risk their health and safety for at least another two years.
Some sort of security system needs to be installed. A swipe-in system on the doors would be a start, and if that isn’t feasible, an LSU Police Department officer or security guard should patrol the building throughout the night.
As far as cleaning goes, there are plenty of companies to hire for that (See: Hoarders).
Students’ health and safety is paramount, and nearly every college on campus takes this seriously — it’s time for the College of Art and Design to do the same.
Chris Grillot is a 20-year-old English and mass communication senior from New Orleans. Follow him on Twitter @TDR_cgrillot.
 
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Contact Chris Grillot at [email protected]