In HRN, elevator to be express again

High Rise North residents are complaining that what came down must now go back up. A stencil marking one of the lobby's elevators an "express elevator" disappeared over the summer, confusing new residents who did not realize the lift was designated for those living on the 15th floor and above. Residents of the higher floors said last week they feared the express elevator designation had been abandoned, and several said they considered express elevators a necessity to avoid long waits when entering the building. But Tim Monaco, head resident of High Rise North, said Friday that a painter would mark the elevator later this week. West Campus officials also said temporary signs could be put in place to mark the express elevator. Monaco added that with or without the signs, residents of the lower floors generally learn to avoid the special elevator. "People follow it," Monaco said. "I've seen people who live on upper floors, when people on the lower floors get on, they give them a hard time and they don't ride it anymore." Several residents of lower floors said last week that they rarely use the northeast elevator because of ingrained experience in other high rises. Still, several residents of higher floors said not everyone is yet aware of the elevator's special status. "It creates a problem when you live on the higher floors and on the way up it stops at all the lower floors," Nursing sophomore Elisa Katz said. "Especially, people who live in High Rise North for the first time don't realize the elevator is supposed to be an express elevator and they get off at the first or second floors." Katz, who lives on the 20th floor, said long elevator delays discourage her from stopping by her room between classes to drop off books. Some residents said that when the sign is repainted, it should look like the red, white and blue murals painted on elevators in High Rise East and High Rise South. The old sign was a small black painted stencil that many residents complain was ineffective. College senior Robert Hernandez said he and his roommates had lived in the same 23rd-floor room for three years because of the high-altitude view of the city, and told friends that the express elevators made the tradeoff of long elevator waits livable. He said he and his roommates would prefer to have the signs replaced. "It's not going to make my life a living hell or anything, but it certainly would be nice to have it reinstated," he said. "I mean, it's a nice service."

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