The fountain and pond in front of Morris Library are dry this summer due to the heat and a shortage of groundskeeping staff, but they are scheduled to fill up again this fall.

SIUC grounds foreman Harlyn Beckman said he has only 23 people working ground maintenance, which means there are not enough workers to do the up-keep that the fountain and pond require.

Beckman said the fountain and pond require extra maintenance in the summer because the heat makes the water stagnant. He said in the fall, when the weather is cool, the fountain and pond do not require as much maintenance.

Advertisement

Chris Koeppel, a graduate student in anthropology from Memphis, said he works in the barracks near the fountain and he misses taking his breaks by it.

It was nice to sit by the fountain, take a break and watch people walk by, Koeppel said.

Beckman said another reason for the empty fountain and pond is that his main concern right now is the grass. He said they start cutting grass at 6 a.m. to keep from blowing grass on cars and other assorted things.

A lot of people don’t realize what is involved, Beckman said.

Sam Fitch, a graduate student in foreign language from Lawrenceville, said he does not think a big hole in front of the library is very attractive.

I just hope they don’t raise our tuition to fix the pond, Fitch said.

Benat Juaristi, a sophomore in industrial technology from Spain, said he misses the ducks that used to hang out in the pond.

Advertisement*

I guess they just don’t fix anything here, just look at the clock (on Pulliam Hall), Juaristi said.