Northwestern will implement loftable beds into university housing in accordance with their 10-year furniture replacement schedule, beginning with Engelhart Hall in December, an official said.
“The plan is that as we are replacing new furniture on a normal schedule in a given building, we will start replacing it with bed-loftable furniture,” said Gregg Kindle, director of the Office of Undergraduate Residential Life.
Kindle said Friday that he did not know how long it would take for all the furniture on campus to be replaced, but it would be more than 10 years. The university already has purchased some loftable furniture for Engelhart, which is due for delivery in December.
The plan is a result of discussions among members of last year’s housing committee, which was composed of students, Residential Life officials, a faculty member and Vice President for Student Affairs William Banis.
The issue originally surfaced because of a bill written by former Associated Student Government Allison Hall Sen. C.J. Willey, who called on the university to allow students to construct their own lofts using wood or cinder blocks.
Kindle said the reason students currently cannot loft their beds themselves is because it presents too much of an insurance risk for the university.
“We don’t want anyone to get hurt,” he said.
Kindle said loftable furniture was not implemented in Slivka Residence Hall, the new undergraduate residential college, because Slivka’s furniture was purchased before the decision. The housing committee recommended the procedure to Banis at the end of Winter Quarter.
“There was some attempt to go back and change the furniture order, but it just wasn’t possible and could have delayed the opening of the building,” Kindle said.
Because the university has a regular schedule of replacing furniture every 10 years, Kindle said implementing loftable beds will not alter the cost to the university dramatically.
Willey said he discussed the bill with Office of Risk Management officials, who originally were open-minded about the idea but later expressed safety concerns.
Officials said extra wood from the lofts could pose a fire hazard due, according to Willey. They also pointed out that students with lofted beds are more likely to have sofas underneath them — also a greater fire hazard. Furthermore, there is a risk that students can fall out of lofted beds.
“These are all valid concerns,” said Willey, a Weinberg junior. “Apparently Cook (County) is the most litigious county in the nation. … They didn’t want the blame falling on the university.”
Willey said although he is grateful that current furniture in university housing eventually will be replaced with loftable furniture, he wishes NU would have allowed students more freedom of choice in the matter, as all other Big Ten universities do.
“It’s mildly disappointing, because it won’t have an effect for quite a while,” Willey said. “Some dorms might get the new furniture next year, but Slivka won’t get it for another 10 years, because they just got new furniture.”
Willey said many students in the dorms approached him about lofting, which is why he was encouraged to write the bill.
Former ASG Student Services Vice President Courtney Brunsfeld said the new proposal probably has been suggested in previous years.
“We never received what we thought was a good answer,” said Brunsfeld, who served on the housing committee.
Brunsfeld said that while Risk Management’s safety concerns were understandable, she didn’t see why the university allows students to bunk their beds — which also can serve as a fire hazard and potential safety risk — but forbids them to build bed lofts. She pointed out that many other universities allow lofting, and that many sororities and fraternities at Northwestern loft their beds.
“It’s something of an issue of student comfort,” said Brunsfeld, a Weinberg senior. “A lot of dorm rooms are not that big, and lofting their beds would give students more room and give them an opportunity to be more creative in their living arrangements.”
