Students feel housing crunch

When freshman Michelle Kanaar woke up to register for housing early Thursday morning, she never expected that hours later, she still would be agonizing about where she will live next year.

“We all went to the computer lab thinking, ‘We’ve got a plan. We’re here early, too,’” Kanaar said. “The second it hit 7 o’clock, I hit the mouse, and it kept saying everything was full. We ended up with no rooms.”

Kanaar is just one of many students who had trouble finding a spot to live on campus next year.

All vacant rooms have been chosen at this point, but single spaces in double rooms, as well as spaces in the Odum Village apartments, still are available, said Larry Hicks, director of the Department of Housing and Residential Education.

“It’s a little bit of a misconception to say that there’s no space available,” Hicks said. “It’s just not where students want to be.”

Hicks said rising sophomores felt the biggest squeeze in housing — even with the opening of Cobb Residence Hall and Odum Village to undergraduates — because of the 1,000 spaces that will be lost with the closing of Morrison Residence Hall and because they were the last to recontract.

Officials reduced the price to live in Odum Village from $2,985 per semester to $2,500 per semester because of the housing situation.

A one-bedroom apartment, considered as a double room, is $75 more per semester than a typical residence hall room.

The additional cost provides students with a bedroom, dining room and kitchen to share. Students also can use the apartment during breaks, which Hicks indicated is the main reason for the difference in price.

Despite the amenities, some students said they still aren’t happy about their options.

“I feel like they kind of turned their back on us,” Kanaar said. “I don’t see how Odum Village is really on campus.”

Hicks said some spots on campus are reserved for freshmen in residence halls because of the need for community building on campus.

“The success or failure of a student on campus is sometimes predicated in their experiences on campus the first few weeks,” Hicks said.

Although freshman Alison Chermak said it is frustrating to know that desirable rooms are off limits, she said she plans to make the best of the situation.

“At first, I was really mad about it, and I felt kind of gypped,” she said. “I didn’t think it was right that incoming freshmen had priority over us. Now, I’m kind of accepting the fact that I have to live there.”

Contact the University Editor at udesk@unc.edu.