Arturo Galletti '96 says he has worked in the Freshman Union's basement recreation room for two years, but he won't this year. Traces of asbestos have been found, according to sources, and the College has closed the room.

"I knew the tiling on the ceiling was in bad shape and I knew they pumped sewage through pipes which passed through the room which often caused a lot of odor," Galletti says, "but asbestos never appeared to be a problem."

The exact nature of the contamination is unknown, and few people working in the building know of the room's closing. Efforts yesterday to reach Marla King, superintendent of the Freshman Union, and Dean of Freshmen Elizabeth S. Nathans were unsuccessful.

For years, members of Harvard's first-year classes have trooped down to the Union basement after dinner for a dessert of pinball and pool. However, members of the Class of 1998 who ventured down stairs last week found the room shut down, with the rec area's electrical equipment, video games and soda machine all unplugged.

"I am a big fan of video games," says Ron T. Williams '98. "And when I went to look to see if the room was open I found the door locked and the lights off with no posted warnings."

Curiously, the door has frequently been left unlocked. Inside, it appeared to a visitor yesterday afternoon as though the room had not been used for some time.

Plastic covers hung over the pool tables, the lights were off, and a thin layer of dust covered everything in the room.

"I found the door unlocked but the lights were off and rows and rows of video games were unplugged," says Jesse G. Lichtenstein '98, who is among a handful of curious first-years to have stuck their head into the room. "It was dusty. It wasn't an inviting place to be, so I left."

In past years, the recreation room was a special place for video game aficionados, who would gather together nightly to share tips and meet friends.

"There were a fair number of people who visited the room," says J.L. Abernathy '96, who frequented the recreation room. "But there was definitely a group of people who went there on a regular basis to play video games."

Hsin Wong '96, a Quincy House resident, says he met his future roommate there.

"I really liked going there because it was a social event for me," Wong says.

Galletti, who worked there, recalls the room as a place where first-years would gather during reading period to relax and remembers it as a good place to spend time