For sophomores wanting to recreate their freshman year, but in a single and also while being left alone, Furnald is the one for you. For incoming freshmen skeptical of the promised “social scene” of Carman and the enigma that is the LLC: Furnald awaits.

Location: 2940 Broadway and 115th Street

  • Nearby dorms: Carman, Schapiro, Frat Row
  • Stores and restaurants: Morton Williams, Shake Shack, Wu and Nuss, Ferris/Lerner is right there, etc.
  • Cost: 2019-2020 year rates: $8,718/year for first-years, $9,872/year for upperclassmen. Expect something similar.

Amenities:

  • Bathrooms: Each floor has two communal bathrooms, typically but not always split male/female. They are communal bathrooms. Adjust your expectations accordingly, though, in my experience, most people manage to stay aware of the fact that they are using communal bathrooms. Each has six sinks, three toilets, and three showers.
  • AC/Heating: Both! Housing controls when the units switch from AC to heat, but you get to control their flow and can turn them on or off. They work very well, but when Housing is legally obligated to turn the heating on in October, it will get to 80 degrees in the hallways. Just keep your heater off.
  • Lounge: There is the big, extra-opulent lounge in the lobby that Columbia loves to show off, complete with a marble bust and a plaque to Royal Furnald, the man this dorm is named after. Floor lounges are a combined kitchen/living space, and are relatively comfortable and, depending on your floor, well-used. To my absolute joy, I found out last semester that the TVs in the lounges are equipped with cable, so you can watch HGTV on the big screen to your heart’s desire.
  • Kitchen: One kitchen per floor with two stovetops, two microwaves, and one oven. Attached to the floor lounge, as noted. The kitchen has a reasonable amount of counter space and cabinet space if you play your cards right. One sink that will get routinely disrespected and dirtied.
  • Laundry: Six dryers/washers in the basement of the building. You can usually count on at least one dryer not actually drying your clothes. Otherwise, they’re fine.
  • Computers/Printing: A closet-like computer lounge off to the side on the main floor, plus one PawPrint setup and a spare computer right by the entrance.
  • Fire Escapes: If only.
  • Gym: I repeat, if only… but Dodge is hardly a three-minute walk away.
  • Elevators: Two perfectly fine elevators servicing the two wings of the building. They will get you to your floor, unless you live on floor 10, in which case you have to take a flight of stairs (the elevators only go up to 9). There are also three neglected sets of stairs.
  • Flooring: Wood? Whatever passes for wood here? Bottom line, it’s not carpet or tile in the rooms. The hallways use a carpet that just got replaced this year.

Room Variety:

  • 190 singles! They are all reasonably-sized, with the smallest at 100 square feet and the largest being truly large, at 163/162 square feet. The largest singles are on the 1st and 10th floor and come with the drawback of having to live on those floors, which both have funky floor plans.
  • 28 doubles. They are all between 171 square feet and the truly ludicrous 275 square feet (hello, Furnald 10), and there are only a couple on each floor.
  • Floor 2 is divided into one female and one male “suite” with about 10 people per side. They each get their own kitchen/lounge and bathroom. Floor 10, being one of the smaller floors, gets a weird, baby-sized kitchen, and their lounge is composed of couches placed in the hallway, for some reason.
  • Unless you’re facing the Journalism School or Lerner (your window faces directly north or south), you’re basically guaranteed to have an excellent view of campus or Broadway.

Numbers:

  • Doubles: There’s no data about Furnald doubles because let’s face it, you’re a sophomore looking for a Furnald single. 
  • Singles: This fluctuates a lot; last year, it was 10/181. These can be pretty tricky to snag.

Bwog Recommendation:

  • If you think you’re the kind of person who would like Furnald, then you’re the kind of person who would like Furnald. It pretty much lives up to its reputation: it is indeed clean and quiet, but not as anti-social as you might think—just don’t expect any Furnald ragers.
  • The views are great, and if your window faces east, you will get to witness some of the most beautiful sunrises in the world (and you’ll get to be woken up by them come late February/early March).
  • Okay, so maybe we had a floor mouse last semester, but I can count the amount of vermin I’ve seen on one hand. Even the Furnald vermin mind their own business!
  • The proximity to Lerner, Butler, and basically everything on campus is not to be underrated. I can be at any class within five minutes from leaving my dorm.

Resident Opinions:

  • “My testimonial for Bwog: I love Furnald so much that I don’t want to move out”
  • “I think my only strong Furnald opinion is that the location is perfect”
  • “Furnald is wholesome and loving”
  • “Extremely thin walls”
  • “Definitely give it a shot—it’s super underrated”

Images via Bwogger and friends