The light street pedestrian bridge has been an eyesore for passersby since the mid-point of the fall semester. It has not only been an eyesore for some, but the culmination of lack of follow-through from the university.

A bridge near the entrance of the Honeysuckle Apartments complex has been on the docket for nearly a decade. The initial word of a new bridge started in 2011. With rumors of a new bridge to be built, many students changed their housing based on the easy access to campus the bridge would offer. Those students were left disappointed. In the most recent Bloomsburg University master plan, the bridge was estimated to be completed in 2014 with a budget of $1,800,000. That was nearly five years ago. Five years over budget and five years left on an empty promise.

This seems to be an ongoing theme on campus. The new art and administration building has been pushed back multiple times and the addition to Lycoming Hall and the surrounding area has faced many setbacks. This is on top of the poor upkeep of the already-existing facilities.

The second week of the semester, Old Science Hall’s septic system had a failure, leading to no bathrooms being open the following day. Luckily, the second day after the failure, the university was closed due to the extreme cold.

The pipe fracture between Soltz and Lycoming Halls is another example of a lack of upkeep. The fracture caused a mild inconvenience to those surrounding the work area and, more importantly, a massive safety concern. If there had been a fire during the pipe leak, the fire suppression system would not have activated.

Along with the inferior infrastructure, general upkeep of campus seems to be lacking. There are large chunks of sidewalk missing. Massive potholes line many campus roadways, especially in the commuter lots, and there’s been a noticeable dropoff of snow removal compared to recent years.

We at The Voice would like to see our administration put forth the effort to take care of the current infrastructure and facilities before new projects are started. While the plumbing fails and the windows leak in Old Science Hall, the foundation is being set for the new building. While the plumbing is being set for the new building, subpar pipe laying from decades ago is causing fractures and fissures across campus, leading to safety concerns for all members of BloomU’s community.

We understand that not all of these problems can be foreseen, but administration should do its due diligence. It has come to our understanding that the delayed completion of the steps from the entrance of Luzerne Hall leading down to Commons was due to the contractors cutting corners. The result was destruction of the previous work and restarting fresh.

Looking ahead at the master plan, there are several endeavors that will require years of work before completion. We hope that the long-term expansion of campus does not lead to an inadequate campus in the short term.

-The Voice