New off-campus housing complexes are becoming increasingly popular with high amounts of amenities; however, they are short of one: air purification systems.

Comstock Place, a new townhouse-style, student housing complex located a few blocks away from campus, has this service standardized. The off-campus housing, which was recently purchased by AnCor, will provide an allergy-friendly living situation for those who need it or want it.

“Twenty to 25 percent of college-age young people suffer from some type of allergy,” said AnCor CEO and Syracuse University alumnus David Stewart. “If you look around the country, what we have is an issue with people who have allergies and need a place to stay.”

In order to achieve an allergy-friendly status, all of the three-bedroom apartments in the complex have been treated with the PURE purification process.

This air cleaning service treats indoor hard surfaces and soft surfaces through a thorough deep cleaning, said Vinny Lobdell, founder, chairman and CEO of HealthWay, the company that does the process.

The apartments are shocked in order to disinfect the space and get rid of odor, harmful bacteria and mold that could be in the carpets and the walls, followed by a “shielding of the environment … to make that the bacteria and odor do not come back,” Lobdell said.

This is, however, an ongoing process where the company comes in for a biannual treatment in order “to maintain the investment,” he added.

In addition to the treatment, each apartment will come with four portable air-purifying units made by HealthWay, a leader in manufacturing high-end air cleaning units, Stewart said.

The units will kill viruses and reduce the spread of germs, and are made similar to those made for hospitals with “industrial strength,” according to the HealthWay website.

While having a purified and clean room helps individuals with allergies, Michele Frontale, supervising pharmacist at SU’s Health Services, believes that it does not necessarily reduce the chances of contracting illnesses. For that, she said there would need to be a sterilization of contact points such as doorknobs.

The purification process cannot help with shaking hands and getting coughed on, she said.

The process does not kill every germ. It’s “not a clean room,” Stewart said, but it will drastically reduce harmful allergens and bacteria.

Ultimately, the housing complex is geared toward creating a better living environment.

“Students live busy lives and spend most of the year, especially in Syracuse with its weather, indoors … (We) want to create a clean and healthy home for them,” Stewart said.

While Comstock Place is an early adopter of this new standard of living, Stewart does believe that the PURE process will become a standard in campus housing and hopes that it will become the “norm.”

“Students are always looking for the next greatest and healthiest thing, like CrossFit and others,” Lobdell said. “This is the next healthy way to live.”

Published on October 13, 2015 at 10:04 pm

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