The residents of Palmer Hall will be delighted to hear about the installation of four new communal bathrooms in the dormitory. Over the summer, Stevens replaced the double style rooms in Palmer with brand-new bathrooms. Previously, Palmer had two bathrooms both situated on the first floor. This created an inconvenience for residents on the second and third floors as they would have to walk down to the first floor to use the bathroom. Palmer has space to house up to 90 residents, all of whom were previously expected to share these two bathrooms. Over the summer, four new bathrooms were added to the second and third floors, with two bathrooms on every floor, one male and one female. These upgrades significantly reduce the number of people per bathroom and lower the distance to the nearest bathroom for many residents.
The bathrooms are located on the far ends of the building. All of these bathrooms have sinks and stalls in the front and showers in the back. The sinks and toilets are automatic to conserve water and each bathroom comes with a paper towel dispenser. Each of the showers has a hook for residents to hang their shower caddies and toiletries while using them.
Members of the Stevens community have shared their feelings about these renovations. Many believe that this was a much-needed renovation considering Palmer is the oldest dormitory still in use. Many look forward to the convenience this will bring and hope this will stop any overcrowding of bathrooms. While not a large-scale renovation, the bathroom changes l certainly improve the quality of life for residents. However, some people believe that this isn’t enough and that more must be done to bring Palmer up to date. It is a common opinion that the building is not as nice as the other freshman halls such as Jonas Hall, Humphreys Hall, or Davis Hall, which is partly attributed to its age. On the other end of the spectrum, some people believe Palmer was fine just the way it was. A few past residents believe that while this is a nice change, they did not mind the long walk to the bathroom. Regardless of opinion, this is certainly a step in the right direction for Stevens. Hopefully, this renovation will bring attention to other older dorms also in need of renewals. Regular updates to Stevens residence halls will ensure campus housing can grow as Stevens enrolls more students.
As for the future of Palmer, there are more renovations down the road. Next summer, the first-floor bathrooms will be redone. This will bring them in line with the newer bathrooms on other floors. The future residents of Palmer will have a lot to look forward to as Stevens continues to take care of its oldest residence hall.
