7 Oct 2013
These are two of my answers to questions in a survey pertaining to University of Miami student housing by University Administration.

Other matters that would change your living choice:
The commute to class from the University Village is extremely treacherous and considerably time consuming for the distance. It should not take nearly 30 minutes to travel 5000 feet via bus, however this happens most every morning, with buses that are so full they do not even stop to pick up additional passengers passing by the UV bus stop every day.

Other comments:
If further housing was to be constructed, I would find apartment-style housing to be strongly preferential, but with a more convenient commute. Living in the UV currently, I appreciate the free parking space that is provided, but find it takes far too long to get to class, without being able to drive there. Walking takes about 15 minutes, and is often, despite the sweating at this time of year, the most desirable option, as far too often, our bus service proves to be too treacherous to be a serious commute option. Considering that class is only 5000 feet from my apartment, it should be a relatively quick commute, but this tends, with great certainty, to not be the case. Buses going to campus from the Ponce garage are often so full that they simply do not stop at the UV. And with a bus only roughly every eight minutes or so, the commute is quite time consuming. On some days, it takes in excess of 30 minutes to get to the Memorial Building via the bus, with the result that after 4 PM, I ALWAYS drive to class.
For comparison, while living in downtown Seattle, Washington last summer, I commuted (by car) to a suburb to work daily. The commute was 12 miles, and took 18 minutes (including traffic, and driving over a toll bridge). A commute that is less than 1 mile certainly should not take nearly as long, let alone longer, than a 12 mile commute.

The UV is, by far, the best current on campus housing option. Having an apartment that has a relatively guaranteed degree of quality and safety near campus is extremely desirable. Costs are slightly expensive, but not absurdly so. 
Maintenance and janitorial services, campus-wide, should be questioned, as they are extremely dubious, at best. Over the course of my duration in University housing (since day 1 of freshman year), I have experienced more serious maintenance issues than I would care to think about. Upon moving into Hecht freshman year, I was confronted, right off the bat, with a non-functioning air conditioner, which took over 2 months to be resolved (with maintenance setting the room on fire and destroying my roommate's towel on my 3rd day in residence). 
While living in a single in Mahoney as a sophomore, I experienced a flood, caused by the air handler's water return being clogged while I was away. The room was uninhabitable, and I had to stay in a hotel that night, an inconvenience that I was not compensated for.
Junior year, while living in a 2/2 in the UV building 2, a week-long power failure (due to a fire in the meter box) struck in early September. We were given rooms in the Holiday Inn for the period. While my roommate and I appreciated this, we found it troublesome to sleep in the same room, and found the length of time required to complete a rather small amount of work to be questionable. The entire building could easily have been rewired in a week, yet it took over 6 days to "procure electric meters", an item that is available off the shelf at Grainger Industrial Supply.

In the future, I could see it being desirable to construct modern apartment-style housing in the former location of the Apartment Area, as it would be relatively convenient to get to both class and public transportation (considering the proximity of the MetroRAIL station).