A "good" RA/RC/JA/what have you has signed an agreement--and will follow it--agreeing not to pursue an "inappropriate" relationship with a student, whether that is being a drinking partner, best friend, or lover. Maybe your schools were different, but our school is small, and therefore the counselors (we call them counselors instead of advisers--their job isn't to narc on the residents) had a much more influential role on our daily activities. If word got around from a student who felt alienated because their counselor had pursued an inappropriate relationship with a resident, they would have been out so fast. Most people take their jobs seriously, because for many it's free room and board in addition to a stipend. In my dorm freshman year, one of my counselors resigned because she wanted to pursue a relationship with a girl on my floor, but she left the job BEFORE they started dating. I think "Felicity" gave a lot of hormonally-raging buffoons the idea that if they went into residential life, they'd be surrounded by lots of young girls willing to date them.
If you are soooo sure that this is the person you want to date and you can't wait, do everyone else (your co-counselors, supervisors, and residents) a favor and resign. Any RA who hits on his/her students to the point where the other residents/advisers are uncomfortable should be stopped.
As I step off my soapbox, I have to mention that I loved my Residential Counselor. He is a cool, open guy, but the lines were still there--even though they're blurrier here at Brown than at other schools. He didn't have to narc on us, so maybe that's why everyone got along so well with him. I mean, we'd see him at bars and parties and it wasn't a big deal. He's a good friend--now. We still keep in touch, and I see him once in a while. I became a counselor the next year, and had a pretty good experience. During our training, they stressed the consequences of pursuing "inappropriate relationships". You can be friends with your residents (most counselors here are only in charge of about 30-45), but common sense would tell one where to draw the line.