Housing approacheth. And, unless you’re on top of it, it’s probably coming up sooner than you think. Before you start knocking on random doors and demanding to know how many tennis balls could fit into the room if the room is haunted what they’ve named their mouse and what its living habits are the room’s square footage, take a deep breath. Bwog’s got you covered; we’ll be rolling out two housing reviews per day until no residence hall is left un-reviewed. Prepare to get (even more) excited: this year, we’re reviewing Barnard residence halls, too! Reviews for all! Today’s residence hall is… Broadway!

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Location: 556 West 114th Street. Housing, facilities, and WikiCU will say 2900 but 556 is what you want to tell the delivery guy.

Nearby dorms: Hogan, Frat Row, Ruggles

Stores and restaurants: Havana, Amir’s, Haagen Daaz, Starbucks, Nussbaum & Wu, NYPL, Ricky’s, Community, pretty much all of Broadway

Cost: $7,324

Amenities:

  • Bathrooms: Communal bathrooms, two men’s and two women’s bathrooms per floor. Things get weird because there’s a curtain for the shower instead of doors.
  •  AC/Heating: Heat and AC, at your complete control (#blessed)
  • Kitchen/Lounge: Kitchen and lounge are separated. Kitchen is very small, with a microwave, two ovens, eight stovetops,cabinets, dishwasher, and paper towel dispenser. Sink water sometimes comes out gray (invest in Brita pitcher!) and the sinks are absurdly shallow. Lounges have TVs, a couch, and two armchairs. Often smell like feet. Sky lounge on the 14th floor has great views of the city, is a nice place to study, and never smells like feet.
  • Laundry: Laundry room in basement (floor C on the elevator). Nice, clean, new, not scary to go into at night. Nine washers ten dryers.
  • Computers/Printers: Computer lab on the third floor. Eight computers and one printer. Breaks as often as any printer on campus does.
  • Gym: Nada. Closest option is Carman basement
  • Intra-transportation: Three of the fastest elevators you’re ever encountered. You’re never waiting too long.
  • Hardwood/Carpet: Hardwood in the rooms, carpet in the hallways and lounge. Tile in the bathroom, kitchen, and area in front of the elevator.
  • Wi-Fi: Yes.

Room variety:

  • Doubles: 3 doubles on each floor ranging from 163 to 200 square feet. Doubles at the end of the hall (39/40 line) have the best views. 22 line is the 200 sq. ft.
  • Singles: The majority of rooms in Broadway are singles. There are 27 Singles on each floor ranging from 105-134 square feet.

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  • Doubles are usually snatched up by sophomores. Last year’s cutoff for small doubles was 10/2893.
  • Broadway singles usually go to rising seniors and rising juniors with lottery numbers better than 1000. Last year’s cutoff for small singles was 20/1353.

Bwog recommendation:

  • There’s really nothing bad to say about Broadway. If you like for things to be relatively clean, and pretty quiet, Broadway’s the place for you. This is not a dorm where you’re going to become best friends with your floormates or have access to big parties. But it is a place where you’ll have calm, quiet, and privacy (though depending on your room location you may sometimes fall asleep to the sound of the raucous youth partying in McBain, the frats, or Havana). You’ll be the perfect distance from everything (Lerner, Butler, John Jay, Starbucks, Morton Williams), and your parents will always remark on what nice dorms Columbia offers when you visit. Bonus: if you live high up and on the side of the dorm facing Broadway, you’ll have an amazing view of the Hudson.

Resident opinions:

  • “There’s literally nothing bad to say about Broadway. If you can live here, do it. I mean, there’s a vending machine on the first floor that has strawberry shortcake ice cream bars.”
  • “Broadway is a total grownup Furnald, so take that as you will. Though, I will admit that the amenities will only be as clean as your floormates make it.”
  • “This place is empty. I mean, it’s not literally empty, but it definitely feels that way. It’s super quiet and I feel like I never see anyone. There’s something to be said for having a quiet dorm when you need to study, but it’s just kind of… soul-less.”
  • “Corner doubles have great views if you’re high up. Showers are suspect because there are no stalls. The hottest fucking water on campus. Not in a good way. Like you will scald yourself if you’re not careful. Thin walls, but Bwog already knows about Broadway’s thin walls. Unbeatable location.”

Gallery: