The University notified some Hall on Virginia Avenue residents that they would have to temporarily move out of their rooms because of structural dangers posed by water leaks last week.

Many of the 14 freshmen who were forced to leave said they are not happy, and they have no guarantee of when they will be able to return.

“All that they’ve done is inconvenience us and all the lack of effort to fix our problem is not comforting,” said freshman Andrew Goldberg, whose ceiling has a large hole and mold on it. Goldberg was moved out of his room to a different floor in HOVA.

The problems stem from HOVA’s structure and a rooftop swimming pool that sits directly above a portion of the rooms on the seventh floor. According to Trammell Crow Company, the contractor in charge of renovating the building, water from the pool deck area leaked through to a machine room and then into the ceilings.

Water seepage, which was a result of Hurricane Floyd’s heavy rain, affected eighth floor residents in addition to a number of seventh floor rooms.

“With a building of this age, there will be issues,” said Trammell Crow’s Director of Engineering Services for the Mid-Atlantic Division Mark Polhemus Sr.

Some residents said the last-minute move was a major inconvenience.

“We had no signs of water damage until (Thursday) and all of a sudden they’re telling us we have to move out,” said eighth floor resident Beth Howard. “It’s more of an inconvenience than you could imagine.”

“It’s absurd,” said Misty Skolnick, Howard’s roommate.

Other residents agreed that the University’s haste in ordering them out was unnecessary.

David Gibson, Goldberg’s roommate, said they first reported leakage three weeks ago.

“We first complained weeks ago, and then when the hurricane came, they made a big deal out of it,” he said.

“(HOVA) is supposed to accommodate people efficiently and it’s not,” said Christina Fanitzi, a HOVA resident who moved to JBKO.

Resident Dara Mazzarella said her mother had to fly to D.C. on last-minute notice from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., to help her move her belongings after she was displaced.

“I’m very unhappy with the way the University has handled this,” Mazzarella said.

The University offered moving and technical support to students including supplies and physical assistance, said Mark Levine, assistant dean of the Community Living and Learning Center.

CLLC provided other support for students who were displaced, according to a press release from Jan-Mitchell Sherrill, associate dean of students. Students received “care packages” from GW catering, free voice mail and call forwarding from the students’ former phones to their new ones, according to the press release.

“Certainly the University is working to accommodate the students,” Levine said.

GW offered displaced students housing in several other residence halls, including Thurston Hall, Mitchell Hall, JBKO Hall, The Aston and Riverside Towers. Several students moved to other floors in HOVA.

Vania Smith, the community director in charge of HOVA, said these problems were not anticipated.

“This was certainly unexpected from all of us,” she said. “We’re working on some programmatic initiatives to help the students.”

Smith said the “HOVA Buddy” program was created as a result of the situation and will help keep displaced residents in contact with HOVA activities. Many seventh and eighth floor residents are participants in the Watergate 723 and Healthy Lifestyles communities, new living and learning programs unique to HOVA. Those students will continue in the programs, despite living elsewhere, Smith said.

Walter Gray, director of Facilities Management, said his department is overseeing the room repairs and hopes to complete temporary repairs by Monday. He said workers have been repairing HOVA over the weekend to get students back into their rooms as soon as possible. Yet, administrators remain unsure of exactly when students can return.

Students do not have to return if they prefer their new living situations, Smith said.

Despite many frustrations among students and parents, Vania Smith praised the students for their flexibility.

“The community that has been built around this problem is really amazing,” she said.

Kathleen Tegeler, an eighth-floor resident, said she was unaffected by the problems in HOVA.

“Maybe we had it too good,” she said.