Posted: 5/12/08 Section: News

Media Credit: Daniel Johnson Garbage overflows from a dumpster of an apartment complex on Third and Healy streets on Sunday.

For the students who are leaving campus, the answer to the question of what to do with the garbage that inevitably comes with the end of the year is obvious.

Throughout the streets of Campustown, garbage is ever-present in the overflowing Dumpsters from departing students. Desks, chairs, food and most everything that students will not be needing through the summer or next year has now been cast aside. The mass of trash forces students in the different types of housing to face similar problems when disposing of their trash.

Brett Bravo, sophomore in LAS, moved out of his residence hall last week and tackled the decision of what to bring back and what to simply throw out.

"It wasn't really that much a decision as what to keep, but it was just annoying trying to get rid of everything when all the people from the dorm were doing the same thing," said Bravo, who lived in Hopkins Hall. "The rugs were all over from people and I think everyone on the floor had a lot of their own garbage to get rid of."

Korie Kelley, sophomore in Education, recently moved out of her apartment on Third and Healey streets in preparation for her summer plans. Luckily for Kelley, she was able to leave most of the cleaning up to her apartment mates.

"I actually left everything for them to clean it up," Kelley said jokingly. "They will be here during the summer so I figured that they can take care of it."

This year's move out was a new experience for Kelley, who attended Cy-Fair College in Cypress, Texas, last year. When comparing it to the move out from her previous school, Kelley said that the end-of-year cleaning was much less organized in Champaign.

"In Texas last year, there was a lot more space, there was a lot bigger campus," she said. "Most of the apartments were only two stories so you aren't waiting for elevators. Whereas here, everyone is racing to go to the elevators, it gets really frustrating."

Michael Binz, junior in Business, will be staying in Champaign throughout the summer to intern with the University and has been "motivated" by others moving out to keep his own apartment clean.

"They're going home, they're doing all these things, and I see them, and I figure I should at least clean up my place," he said.

Binz stayed in Champaign last year as well and knows now the benefits.

"It's just so easy this way, in general, the other way you have to move things around and it's just a pain," he said, "This way, I'm staying in the same apartment, I don't have to deal with too much of all of that ridiculous garbage other than seeing it and I've just got it made."

Even though the current system of getting rid of the trash may seem inefficient and lead to excessive trash, the students all speculated that there is a better way to go about cleaning.

"You look around and see all of this garbage, and it's pretty disconcerting," Bravo said. "But, honestly, there isn't too much that you can do about it. With so many people moving out, you're bound to have as much garbage as we do. I think you just have to bite the bullet."

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