The large, brown mushroom grew inside a Capilano University residence shower room for so long that students gave it a name.
“In our group chat, someone sent a picture of the mushroom and said we should name him Ollie,” said Amelia Caldwell, a first-year student whose dorm room is right beside the showers in CapU’s Cypress Hall.
Caldwell, 18, and several other students are “grossed out” by the shower rooms in Cypress Hall and Grouse Hall, a neighbouring residence near the North Vancouver university.
When she accidentally dropped her razor on the stained floor, Caldwell said she threw it out rather than use it again. And she will only shower with shoes on.
“I wear slides. I’m terrified to shower here barefoot.”
A mushroom grows in a dirty shower room at Capilano University. Photo submitted by CapU student
When Postmedia News toured the shower rooms Thursday, there were tiles broken off the wall, revealing rusted, flaking metal and water-stained wood beneath; large black or brown substances growing over the previously white caulking and tiles; and peeling paint and stains on walls and ceilings that resemble mould.
On Friday, a CapU administrator said the issues would be fixed.
“A thorough deep-cleaning regimen has been completed, and the broken tiles in the showers are currently being replaced,” said Daniel Levangie, associate vice-president of student success.
Levangie’s email didn’t address how the showers got so bad in the first place.
When Caldwell, who is from Pitt Meadows, moved into the residence last fall, she noticed the mushroom starting to grow. It got quite large before someone removed it.
And then it returned.
“A spore just keeps growing back,” she said.
In Caldwell’s group chat, another student said they had recently removed Ollie’s sibling with a paper towel and threw it away.
Caldwell reported the mushroom and the dirty bathroom using a QR code posted in the shower room, but said she never heard back from anyone.
Other students told Postmedia that their classmates and some teachers have raised concerns with the administration about the mildew and fungus. They worry the black gunk in the washrooms is causing them to get sick. One student, who asked not to be named, said she got an infected toe even though she wore shoes in the shower. That student said she pays $4,350 per semester, or roughly $8,700 for the school year, to live in the residence. That is in keeping with fees posted on the CapU website.
CapU student Amelia Caldwell looks at the stained walls and ceiling in a residence shower room. Credit: Arlen Redekop/Postmedia News Photo by Arlen Redekop /PNG
The students all love CapU and being in residence. They just want the showers to be less icky.
Levangie insisted the black spots in the showers are mildew, not mould, and are being removed with “specialized cleaning products.”
'Grossed out' students say mould, mushrooms growing in dorm showers at North Vancouver university
His email included several photographs of cleaner-looking showers: “CapU remains committed to maintaining high standards of cleanliness and safety in student residences,” it said.
Postmedia asked the Post-Secondary Education Ministry if it had rules that schools need to follow around dormitory cleanliness or if these buildings undergo any inspections by external agencies.
In a statement, the ministry responded that universities and colleges are responsible for the operation of student housing.
“We expect these institutions to create safe and welcoming environments,” it said.
‘Ollie’ the mushroom in a CapU residence shower room. Photo submitted by CapU student
On a sheet on the back of the shower door in Cypress Hall, where the mushroom grew, maintenance workers recorded cleaning the room regularly in 2023, sporadically in 2024, and only once in 2025.
On a similar sheet in the Grouse Hall shower room, the last cleaning documented by maintenance was in October 2024.
“We acknowledge the presence of cleaning logs that appear incomplete,” Levangie’s email said. The external cleaners have now been asked to better document “the regular cleaning schedule.”
Twenty-five students share the four shower stalls on Caldwell’s floor in Cypress Hall, she said.
The students said they tried to use bleach to clean the showers, but it didn’t worked.
“How much could it really cost to fix up the gross corners and the caulking?,” Caldwell asked.
Most first-years at universities and colleges typically complain about cafeteria meals. That’s not the top concern for these students.
“The worst part for me is not the food. It’s the showers,” Caldwell said.
source: https://vancouversun.com/health/nor...ut-by-mould-mushrooms-growing-in-dorm-showers
archive: https://archive.md/bqW9p
“In our group chat, someone sent a picture of the mushroom and said we should name him Ollie,” said Amelia Caldwell, a first-year student whose dorm room is right beside the showers in CapU’s Cypress Hall.
Caldwell, 18, and several other students are “grossed out” by the shower rooms in Cypress Hall and Grouse Hall, a neighbouring residence near the North Vancouver university.
When she accidentally dropped her razor on the stained floor, Caldwell said she threw it out rather than use it again. And she will only shower with shoes on.
“I wear slides. I’m terrified to shower here barefoot.”
A mushroom grows in a dirty shower room at Capilano University. Photo submitted by CapU student
When Postmedia News toured the shower rooms Thursday, there were tiles broken off the wall, revealing rusted, flaking metal and water-stained wood beneath; large black or brown substances growing over the previously white caulking and tiles; and peeling paint and stains on walls and ceilings that resemble mould.
On Friday, a CapU administrator said the issues would be fixed.
“A thorough deep-cleaning regimen has been completed, and the broken tiles in the showers are currently being replaced,” said Daniel Levangie, associate vice-president of student success.
Levangie’s email didn’t address how the showers got so bad in the first place.
When Caldwell, who is from Pitt Meadows, moved into the residence last fall, she noticed the mushroom starting to grow. It got quite large before someone removed it.
And then it returned.
“A spore just keeps growing back,” she said.
In Caldwell’s group chat, another student said they had recently removed Ollie’s sibling with a paper towel and threw it away.
Caldwell reported the mushroom and the dirty bathroom using a QR code posted in the shower room, but said she never heard back from anyone.
Other students told Postmedia that their classmates and some teachers have raised concerns with the administration about the mildew and fungus. They worry the black gunk in the washrooms is causing them to get sick. One student, who asked not to be named, said she got an infected toe even though she wore shoes in the shower. That student said she pays $4,350 per semester, or roughly $8,700 for the school year, to live in the residence. That is in keeping with fees posted on the CapU website.
CapU student Amelia Caldwell looks at the stained walls and ceiling in a residence shower room. Credit: Arlen Redekop/Postmedia News Photo by Arlen Redekop /PNG
The students all love CapU and being in residence. They just want the showers to be less icky.
Levangie insisted the black spots in the showers are mildew, not mould, and are being removed with “specialized cleaning products.”
'Grossed out' students say mould, mushrooms growing in dorm showers at North Vancouver university
His email included several photographs of cleaner-looking showers: “CapU remains committed to maintaining high standards of cleanliness and safety in student residences,” it said.
Postmedia asked the Post-Secondary Education Ministry if it had rules that schools need to follow around dormitory cleanliness or if these buildings undergo any inspections by external agencies.
In a statement, the ministry responded that universities and colleges are responsible for the operation of student housing.
“We expect these institutions to create safe and welcoming environments,” it said.
‘Ollie’ the mushroom in a CapU residence shower room. Photo submitted by CapU student
On a sheet on the back of the shower door in Cypress Hall, where the mushroom grew, maintenance workers recorded cleaning the room regularly in 2023, sporadically in 2024, and only once in 2025.
On a similar sheet in the Grouse Hall shower room, the last cleaning documented by maintenance was in October 2024.
“We acknowledge the presence of cleaning logs that appear incomplete,” Levangie’s email said. The external cleaners have now been asked to better document “the regular cleaning schedule.”
Twenty-five students share the four shower stalls on Caldwell’s floor in Cypress Hall, she said.
The students said they tried to use bleach to clean the showers, but it didn’t worked.
“How much could it really cost to fix up the gross corners and the caulking?,” Caldwell asked.
Most first-years at universities and colleges typically complain about cafeteria meals. That’s not the top concern for these students.
“The worst part for me is not the food. It’s the showers,” Caldwell said.
source: https://vancouversun.com/health/nor...ut-by-mould-mushrooms-growing-in-dorm-showers
archive: https://archive.md/bqW9p
