More on this later.

But come on– tapestries? Princetonians, take note. Here are some Fire Safety notices about dorm room fixtures that, who would have thought, aren’t kosher (a shout out to my Passover Jews):

“UMBRELLA IN DOOR: $25.00″

“TAPESTRY – should be placed against wall: $0.00″

“REMOVE SHOES FROM HALLWAY/STAIRWELL: $25.00″

Additional student-submitted violations:

“$50 for a chin-up bar in a doorway (way above anyone’s head)”– DK

“Unsanitary and/or excessively disorderly conditions. Remove excess: clothing on floor. $0.00.”– AF

“We had an exit sign pointing at the door and they stole it and charged us for it. $25.” –JTG

“I got a warning for having a pillow fort in the hallway.” — NA

So, how does one get around these fines and regulations? In my case, have a violation so large that Fire Safety cannot do anything about it.

Enter: The Beached Whale.

It was a freshman mistake. My roommates and I unwittingly decided to purchase an illegal fridge. Not a separate fridge and a microwave (also illegal). A full-size behemoth. That monstrosity in the picture above (so large that tourists come and take photos with it) rolled into the dorm one day on a huge moving cart, cemented itself in the common room corner, and we were stuck.

Bedsheets were not an option.

Princeton’s policy is that all fridges must be counter height. Ours was…almost 6 feet tall. How did we not get fined?

Sheer, shameless desperation. Each time they came to inspect, we begged and pleaded with Fire Safety (”Look, we’ve been trying to get rid of it all year…we didn’t know, honestly! We’re just dumb freshman…look at it! Could you move this thing?!”) and amazingly, the appraisal of Fire Safety was essentially: “Damn, I guess you’re right.”

They left us with a warning. We finally called the movers– after the third inspection.

Or something like that.

In any case, remember how the University started fining students who painted their walls — even though in the past Housing had allowed students to avoid a penalty by painting rooms back at the end of the year?

Students protested, claiming that Housing ought to have notified them of the change in enforcement policies.  And those protests?  Seems like they worked! The USG will announce tomorrow that they have successfully negotiated with Facilities to waive the fees.

An upperclassman told me tonight (as I sat in her azure-painted abode) that after her roommate’s parents called to complain about the fine, Housing responded that while they planned to pursue strict enforcement in the future, they were waiving/refunding fines assessed this year.  As long as students paint their room backs properly in the spring, they’ll be in the clear.

Housing’s reversal came after a group of about 50 affected students petitioned housing to waive the fees. The USG also fought against the fines, and USG President Connor Diemand-Yauman has now released a statement to The Ink on the matter (after the jump!):

I am happy to report that after much discussion and negotiation with administrators, Facilities has agreed to reimburse students for all painting charges incurred thus far during the academic year. I’m pleased that the USG was able to help the students who were unexpectedly fined, and I’m grateful to Facilities for their receptiveness to student concerns.

To be clear, the new policy the USG negotiated is for the current academic year only. It has apparently always been Facilities’ policy to charge students the average set cost of painting and repairing rooms, and Facilities will still inspect all rooms at the end of this academic year (after Commencement) for repairs and paint jobs. However, under this year’s temporary policy change, any room found to be in need of repairs or paint at the end of the school year will be charged for the actual cost of restoration, instead of the average cost, which tends to be significantly higher. In other words, Facilities won’t be making money off of students this year when it fines them for repairs and paint jobs. Thus, this year’s USG-negotiated temporary policy will actually be a vast improvement from regular policy because students will be charged much less than usual.

I should also mention that the existing policy prohibiting paint is still in effect–students are not permitted at any time to paint or to re-paint their rooms.  To view the full policy statement, please see Housing’s Terms and Conditions (http://www.princeton.edu/facilities/housing/undergraduate_info/res-guide-0910/policies-and-procedures/terms-and-conditions-1/).