Whether you are a rising sophomore trying to avoid the McBain shaft or a rising senior holding out for Hogan in group selection, here's the annual update on updates, giving you the inside skinny on housing renovations slated for the summer.

The eight-person Ruggles suites are undergoing major changes. Director of Housing Services Herman Matte has said that he is "very excited" about the changes, which will remove an unused dumbwaiter from each suite and rearrange the bathrooms to create an integrated living-dining area.

"Before, there was no place for members of the suite to all hang out," Matte said. The larger Ruggles suites were often characterized by residents gathering in rooms of suite members, or groups standing around dark, cramped kitchens. Next year, the housing department hopes that suites will feature more flexible and integrated spaces.

Also for rising sophomores, McBain will receive a second elevator. Matte said he was "super excited about this," not only because of the elevator itself, but also for the "smart technology" that is being installed and will use the locations of both elevators to determine where they are needed the most. "For instance, if one elevator is taking someone down from a higher floor, the other elevator will stay somewhere around the middle floors," said Heather Tsonopoulos, manager of marketing and communications for Housing and Dining.

Tsonopoulos also said that the elevator system will "learn" requests.

"Let's say you have a class at 9 a.m. every day, so you push the elevator button at about that time every day," he said. "The elevator will learn that it needs to be there then, and so will eventually just be there."

The McBain project won't be finished in time for move-in in September, but Matte said that it is due to be completed "around October or November."

On the east side of campus, Wien is also due to undergo major changes. After months of promises, the dorm will see its vented doors replaced with new, more sound-proof ones.

"We expect that this will dramatically reduce the noise level, both in the rooms and in the halls," Tsonopoulos said of the upgrades to the vents.

The new doors will also feature CUID swipe access locks like those curently in place in River.

Wien is also slated to have its unisex bathrooms replaced with single-sex bathrooms by floor. However, since floors will still be co-ed, some students will have to walk up or down a flight of stairs to access their facilities. While the information on which floors are which has not yet been released, the designations will come out before general selection.

Additionally, the Wien Food Court will close at the end of the year. Director of Housing and Dining Scott Wright cited a lack of student attendance as the reason for the facility's closure, adding that it was a simple matter of dollars and cents.

"We haven't broken even in years" he said of the facility.

Housing and Dining is still in talks with the Columbia College Student Council and the Engineering Student Council on what should be done with the to-be-vacated space. Wright said that he anticipates some kind of lounge to replace the food court.

On Riverside Drive, Woodbridge may become more environmentally friendly. The building is scheduled to have its ailing boiler replaced with a new, more efficient one. Like the McBain elevators, the new boiler will have a smart system so that heat will only go on when its thermometers sense a need, avoiding the overheated days that occasionally hit the building. Woodbridge will also receive new windows designed to insulate the building more effectively.

"There is no point in putting in a new energy efficient boiler if all the energy you are saving leaks out," Matte said. The administration also plans to use clean-burning biofuels in the boiler, provided the cost doesn't escalate too much.

Matte also indicated that Housing plans on renovating two of the brownstones, although administrators have not yet determined which two would be slated for work.