Langara staff and students unhappy with college’s waste control

Reported by Sydney Morton

Langara College staff and students have been complaining about trash cans not being regularly cleared, floors not being swept or mopped and dust balls gathering in the corners of the college.

The lack of cleanliness distracts students from their studies and indicates the campus is not properly maintained.

“I felt disrespected in the space because we are paying to be here and have our classes in here,” Kristina Simic, a second-year design formation student said. “To be around an environment that is unclean is uncomfortable for me.”

Response from college’s facilities services

According to Raymond Yeung, manager of facilities services at Langara, janitorial services start early in the morning and most are finished before midnight. Cleaners follow set routes throughout buildings on campus and busier places such as the cafeteria get more attention.

“If we see a pattern, janitorial supervisors would then put an area on patrol status to make sure that the service is no longer being missed, and that the problem is addressed,” Yeung said, in an email, after declining to speak to The Voice by telephone.

Bruce Kennedy, workshop coordinator at Studio 58, founded a compost service for the theatre company and is disappointed in Langara’s janitorial services.

“Because we are here all the time the waste bins get filled quickly and when it doesn’t get taken we really notice it,” Kennedy said. “I would say it’s lacking and could certainly be improved.”

Mice found in design department’s printer

The department chair of Langara’s design formation program, Marcela Noriega, is so disturbed by the level of uncleanliness that she no longer allows her students to eat in the classrooms. Noriega believes the lack of hygiene has promoted a mouse infestation on campus.

“One time I went to use my printer and the paper was coming out with stains, and when we opened it there were mice nesting in there,” Noriega said. “If you pay attention there are mouse traps everywhere.”

Students and employees can email facilities@langara.ca to report cleaning issues.