Does Ohio University seriously think it has solved the housing problem?

I am glad that the university has created a back-up plan for underclassmen housing, but in no way does this new back-up plan solve all of OU’s housing problems. Sure, if enrollment continues to increase, which is likely, all of the underclassmen will have a place to stay. That is great. But there is eventually going to be fallout for upperclassmen in two ways. First, current upperclassmen who were banking on living in the cheaper-than-rent-priced dorms and who did not get an apartment for next year will be in trouble. Secondly, and the larger problem, is in about two years, when all of this year’s freshmen need to find a place to live off-campus, this will be difficult. The problem is that OU (officials) did not think this through all the way. Sure, they evaluated and dealt with on-campus housing. That is great. But they did not think about nor deal with the real problem at OU, which is off-campus housing. There are several ignored issues pertaining to off-campus living that need dealt with.

Athens has a limited amount of off-campus dwelling. Landlords are already maxing out the housing (some are already beyond the suggested safety limits). Where will all of this year’s freshmen and next year’s freshmen live when inadequate and unhealthy off-campus housing during their junior and senior years is all that is left?    

Alex Dolin is a senior psychology major.