It seems as though the University has reneged on its pledge to provide affordable housing to students in need.
In Oct. 2005, the University announced its intention to sell the Westmoreland Village Apartment Complex, located on West 18th Avenue. The 37-building, 404-unit complex had long provided apartments for low-income and otherwise non-traditional students. Rent for these one-and-two-bedroom apartments cost tenants an estimated $200 less compared to similar units in the area. That a large quantity of housing space existed at such bargains, and included a daycare center for children, was a boon for older students – particularly those who needed to work in order to both cover tuition and pay housing expenses.
So it came as little surprise that, in the wake of the announcement, various University and community groups expressed their objections to the proposal. The University Senate, comprising faculty members, formally opposed the sale in Jan. 2006, and the Student Senate soon followed. But Michael O’Connell was undeterred. The commercial and investment real estate owner bought Westmoreland in May 2006 for $18.45 million. The University concluded renovating the apartments wasn’t worth the price tag of doing so. It proceeded with the sale, which was approved by the Oregon State Board of Higher Education two months later.
The approval was not without stipulations, however. In approving the sale, the OSBHE stated that direct, long-term action must be taken to ensure all students’ housing needs. The University responded by unveiling the Housing Strategic Plan before the beginning of the 2007-08 school year. The aims of the plan are to shift focus toward improving on-campus options for students, encouraging them to stay on campus beyond their freshman year. Under the plan, $40 to $60 million will be allocated over 10 years to renovate the University residence halls. Nearly 2,000 new beds will be added, and rooms will be constructed in a manner more similar to that of the new Living Learning Center.
The Housing Strategic Plan will create a more comfortable campus environment for students. But the entire proposal is a diversion from what the OSBHE stressed when they approved the sale. Sure, the 10-year plan will create more modernized housing for students. But these new rooms will reportedly cost $4,000 more per year than the current double rooms on campus. How is that providing affordable housing to students who need it? It further ignores the reality that most students will undoubtedly choose to live off campus following their freshman years, regardless of the conditions of University Housing.
The University needs to remember its priorities lie, first and foremost, with the welfare of students. Pricing the less affluent among them out of their homes runs contrary to this value. Hopefully students will be able to find affordable housing elsewhere. They just shouldn’t expect much help from the University administration.