THE ISSUE: UNC housing and residential education officials have recently proposed plans for a second super-suite style on-campus housing option. The proposed building, located between Morrison and Rams Head Parking Deck, would replace the soon-to-be closed apartments of Odum Village.
Click here to see Kern Williams’ opposing viewpoint.
It simply doesn’t make sense for the Department of Housing and Residential Education to replace apartment-style housing with a super suite-style residence hall.
The closure of Odum Village will result in a loss of apartment-style housing for 492 graduate and undergraduate students. This would leave Ram Village Apartments, which can house about 900 students, as the only nonfamily apartment-style living available on campus.
Such a drastic cut to a popular housing style for upperclassmen will undoubtedly cause many juniors and seniors to seek off-campus housing rather than live in suite-style residence halls.
The planned residence hall will be located in the wooded area near Morrison Residence Hall. This location is much closer to the main part of campus than is Odum Village, a fact that may be appealing to upperclassmen who want to live in apartment-style housing but don’t want to feel isolated from a majority of students their age.
The housing department’s decision to propose a super suite-style residence hall stems partially from the knowledge that students prefer a low-cost option. But there are already many students willing to pay the higher price to live in Odum or Ram Village, and the new residence hall — regardless of its style — will not provide nearly enough housing units to replace the capacity of Odum Village.
Therefore, the new units will certainly be in high demand, and I don’t believe the price tag associated with apartment-style housing will deter students. Off-campus apartments are generally less expensive, but they attract a different demographic of students than those who want to live on campus because of the significant difference in proximity, availability and environment.
