Even hotels receive report cards, and the Inn at Penn is failing to maintain its GPA.
An August inspection by parent company Hilton Hotels Corp. found that the hotel was simply not up to par, prompting $9.5 million renovations.
Although the Inn at Penn first opened in September 1999, company inspections several months ago determined that the facility needed renovations to fix both exterior and interior problems, including window repairs, mold removal and the periodic updating of guest rooms.
"We started to see our scores drop," said Nancy Barag, spokeswoman for the hotel.
The project draws its revenue from money generated by the hotel's operations and is separate from the residential and housing budget set aside for University projects, including the refurnishing of dormitories and buildings.
The University and Hilton Hotels are collaborating to implement the project.
No full-scale renovations have occurred since the hotel opened, but various measures have been taken to maintain the overall aesthetic quality of the hotel, such as the replacement of the stairway carpeting.
According to Senior Vice President for Facilities and Real Estate Services Omar Blaik, hotel public spaces require renovation every seven to eight years, while the exterior usually lasts for 15 years.
"Over time, they get worn from the sheer number of people that have come through," Barag said. "We don't wait for the customers to tell us. We try to be proactive and see what needs to be fixed and when."
Scott Bamford, a project manager for Intech Construction Inc.-- the contracting and construction company that renovated the three high rises at Penn -- said that there is no set time for hotel renovations.
"It depends on how busy a hotel is, what kind of shape [it's] in," he said.
The Inn at Penn experienced water-filtration problems shortly after opening. The problem was fixed repeatedly but never completely resolved.
"It's not uncommon to get some systems that are not functioning 100 percent," Blaik said, regarding the water-filtration glitch. The current repairs should permanently fix the problem. He expects the exterior renovations to last for another 15 years before the process needs to be repeated.
Bamford declined to comment on whether facility problems are common shortly after a building is built.
College junior Lu Zheng said that while interior repairs might be necessary, she did not see why the exterior needed to be fixed.
"It seems like it's kind of a waste on the exterior," she said. "It always looked nice."
She said she would rather see the money that will be spent renovating the exterior used for other much-needed renovations inside the hotel.
Construction work currently focuses on setting up the scaffolding as a prelude to the actual repair work.
The hotel is currently operating on reduced staff. The hotel's restaurant, Penne, is closed for the week to allow for installation of a new bar counter and carpeting and will reopen on Monday.
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