The Tenleytown-AU Metro stop has character. The bicycle without wheels that has been there for over two years, the bulletin board that has been without a glass cover for a year, the frequently overflowing garbage cans and the large, gray and mysterious boxes that stand to the side of the shuttle pathway form these classic hallmarks.
For many, these items have simply become part of the charm of the Metro stop, but the responsibility must lie with someone to clean and fix the area around the stop.
"I remember that bike, it was such an eyesore - along with the broken schedule stand without a schedule in it," said Emily Wiley, a senior in the Kogod School of Business.
The origin of the faded yellow bicycle is unknown. Students who have been at AU for a few years have watched as it was slowly dismantled. First the wheels went, then the handle bars, leaving the remains chained to the bicycle rack.
The bicycle was removed soon after Sept. 26, the day when Metro spokesman Steve Taub said that he would have someone from Metro "check it out, [but] we don't know if they'll remove it or try to get someone to."
Whether the bicycle was removed by an employee of the District, which had no record of the first report, or by the construction workers that are operating near the Metro stop, is not known.
Last year, someone put a hole through the bulletin board that sits near the AU shuttle stop. The board, which once contained bus schedules and the occasional club fair advertisement, has remained broken ever since.
Leonard Jukkala, crime prevention coordinator for Public Safety, said, "The University put in work orders to have it fixed," but did not know when these orders were filed.
However, no one at Physical Plant Operations was under the jurisdiction to fix the bulletin board. As a result of the confusion, the work order was put on hold and was forgotten.
"[The bulletin board] could actually belong to Metro," said Dwight Allen, manager for Public Safety's Police Services. "That could explain the reason it's not fixed yet, because no one knows who it belongs to."
Later, Allen confirmed the bulletin board and the bicycle were the responsibility of D.C.'s Department of Public Works.
Although a representative from Mayor Anthony Williams' office provided a confirmation number for the work order, the bulletin board has not been repaired.
Allen said this department is also responsible for emptying the garbage can at the shuttle stop.
Another source of mystery for some students is the presence of the large gray boxes at the shuttle stop. They belong to Verizon Communications, according to the D.C. Department of Space.
According to Verizon's Web site, the boxes are called "pedestals" and are full of switches that help operate the phone system in the area.
