Students living on campus to split cost of Brody water switch

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MSU students living in residence halls will split the cost of switching the Brody Complex’s water supply to East Lansing’s water system.

The switch, which occurred during the spring semester, has doubled the amount MSU typically pays to supply water to campus buildings.

The usual price per 1,000 gallons supplied to campus buildings is $1.24; switching the Brody Complex to East Lansing’s water supply has been costing the university about $2.68 per 1,000 gallons of water.

MSU’s Hospitality Services and all students who reside on campus will pay for the switch through room and board rates in lieu of students living in Brody’s residence halls picking up the entire cost, said Robert Patterson, the chief financial officer of Residential and Hospitality Services.

Although the cost of water at Brody Complex is higher, each MSU student pays similar amounts in room and board, Patterson said.

For example, residents within the complex do not pay a higher rate and students living off campus do not pay at all.

“When we charge our residential halls, we charge the same rate no matter what hall you are in,” Patterson said. “We try to treat everybody the same while we don’t have a caste system within the residential halls.”

Based on how much water is used, MSU’s estimated water bill for 2008-09 — before the Brody Complex’s connection to the city — equated to about $108,650 at the complex.

That number likely will increase as a result of switching the complex to East Lansing’s supply.

The 2008-09 water cost for all of campus totaled about $1.75 million.
Because of the switch, Brody Complex, unlike all other residence halls, uses softened water, which overall is more expensive than the water supplied by MSU, said Bob Ellerhorst, director of utilities at the Physical Plant.

The extra treatment the water receives results in an increased cost, he said.

To convert the university water system to one similar to that of the city of East Lansing, Ellerhorst said there are a number of available options ­— each with a cost.

When East Lansing switched to a softened water system about 40 years ago, MSU had the option of connecting to the city’s pipes, but chose not to connect and pay the cost, Ellerhorst said.

In the future, University Village Apartments on Kalamazoo Street, Brody Complex and soon Kellogg Center will have switched to city water as each location is close to East Lansing’s water supply.

Constructing an on-campus water softening plant has been proposed — at a cost of $20 million to $30 million — but it has not reached a recommendation by the university, Ellerhorst said.

Marketing junior Nick Pingtella said although the quality of water lacked in appearance and taste when he lived in Shaw Hall his freshman year, paying for a new plant with tuition dollars would not be the best option.

“It would be fair (to split the cost), but I would not be in favor of it,” Pingtella said. “A new plant costs a huge amount when (students) could easily buy bottled water or filter.”

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