The Oberlin Review
<< Front page News September 16, 2005

Union St. affects landlords
Oberlin Town and College argue over Union St. housing
 
Union Street: Part of the new housing that, according to town landlords, will hurt their business.
 

While over 100 students worried about when they could move into their rooms in the new Union Street houses this fall, many local landlords worried about how they will fill the vacancies that the new housing has created.

Even though both city residents and College officials agree that the new housing will have an impact on the town, there is a large amount of speculation over whether that impact will ultimately be positive or negative.

According to College Vice President for Finance Ron Watts, the new College housing will have a positive impact on the town’s economy in the long run. In the short term, he predicted, property values will depreciate, but eventually single families will move in, increasing property values again.

Watts emphasized that families often take better care of homes.

“Students throw in a mattress and cement blocks,” he said. “Families fix up a property and make it a home.”

Gary Boyle, planning director for the city of Oberlin, agrees that the new College housing could help create long-term economic stability in city neighborhoods.

“Student housing is transient in nature,” he said. “Students can’t have the same commitment to a neighborhood that residents do.”

Additionally, city officials agree that the new housing will not have a significant effect on Oberlin’s tax base. According to Oberlin City Finance Director Sal Talarico, since the College built the new housing on property it already owned, rather than buying new land from the town, the College’s tax-exempt status will not deny the town tax revenue.

While the city and College seem to agree that some of the long-term effects of the new housing will be positive, both parties also anticipate more negative immediate effects.

Watts predicts that property values will decrease in the short-term due to increased vacancies. He added that while the College has the best interest of the town in mind, it is the town’s responsibility and jurisdiction to fill the vacancies.

“It is not our problem,” he said. “We are not the government.”

The city and College expressed hope that the vacancies will eventually be filled by families, but many townspeople believe that this is easier said than done.

The Oberlin Chamber of Commerce questioned whether Oberlin offers enough jobs to draw new families into the area and support them.

Local real estate agent and former landlord David Sonner said that there are many homes in Oberlin that, due to their size, will be difficult to convert to single-family units.

“What will be done with a property with 15 rooms in it that was built for a large family?” he said. “Who will buy it and maintain it, and for what purposes?”

In addition to concerns over finances, city members expressed concern over the division between the town and College. According to the landlords, off-campus housing has long been a vital link in the sometimes tenuous relationship between the College and the town.

“We like the students. We enjoy having them here,” said Carol Graham, a local landlady. “Hopefully, this change will not create an island of separation from the town.”

While the issue of College housing has become a sore spot in town-gown relations, officials from both sides are working together to search for solutions.

“The Facilities Planning Committee has met with people in the neighborhoods and tried to be responsive to issues of parking and landscaping,” said Linda Gates, dean of students at Oberlin College.

Additionally, officials from the College and city have met in informal discussions to address a variety of topics.

“They meet to discuss what can be done jointly to improve the job market, finances for the school district, and other issues,” Talarico said.

Despite the College and city’s efforts for collaboration, the housing issue reveals the conflict of interest that often makes such collaboration difficult.

“It’s clear we are in a competitive market. Other schools have much more luxurious living spaces,” said Gates when asked why the College undertook the Union Street housing project. She explained that the College’s main goal was to provide a better living experience for students.

“The College is doing what it needs to do,” said Gorske. “But the effect, the ramification of that for those people who have student rentals, has been economic hardship.”
 
 

   


Search powered by