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CollegeTownLife Limiting Percentage of Rentals in an Area Winona, MN |
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CollegeTownLife Limiting Percentage of Rentals in an Area Winona, MN |
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That is unlikely for three reasons: academic trends, demographic trends and global trends in energy production. First, the assumption that the number of students living off-campus will only increase is worth questioning. From an academic standpoint, it certainly isn’t desirable; the trend is in the opposite direction. Research shows that students who live on campus are more likely to graduate; they are much more likely to have informal contact with faculty, which can improve their academic performance and make them more satisfied with their college experience. Research also shows that students who live on campus make better use of their time (since they don’t do all the buying and cooking and cleaning, etc.) and develop a better sense of themselves as students. In addition, the money that landlords are currently harvesting from the students of WSU could be captured for the university’s benefit — a fact the university can’t help but notice. Given all this, is it likely that the current abnormally high off-campus housing rates will continue into the future? Or are more units like the East Lake dorms a probable scenario? Second, middle-class Winonans assume that they will continue to value what they value now: the typical large home on the large suburban lot. But in fact this represents a middle-class value only so long as children are in the picture. The trend for the older baby boomer population is in the opposite direction: Empty nesters want smaller houses served by public transportation and close to crucial services such as shopping and health care. The demographics are undeniable: Most of us will soon be old, and we won’t want to mow that acre of lawn and we will be unable to drive at night. Where will we live, then? We are already seeing the answer in places like the Kensington or Washington Crossing. But the viability of such developments, or of continued downtown house ownership, is much reduced when the surrounding neighborhood becomes a slum, which is essentially what is happening. Finally, the willingness on the part of Winona’s middle class to abandon the city core to its fate is based on the assumption that their automobile-dependent, energy-guzzling lifestyle will continue into the foreseeable future. This assumption is becoming very hard to defend, both from the supply angle and from the environmental consequence angle. Whether you follow peak oil scenarios — which claim that we have reached the peak or highest point of oil production worldwide — or you read the very disturbing climate change predictions which claim that runaway global warming has already begun, leading to possibly lethal consequences for our civilization — it is clear that we will soon have to start figuring out better ways to get to work and cheaper ways to heat our houses. Our lifestyle is trending one way, while our resource base and the health of our environment are trending the opposite. There will be a reappraisal of what is affordable, and it will come sooner than most people realize. Winona’s downtown neighborhoods were designed for the energy-efficient, socially compact lifestyle of the 1890s. Most people got around on foot or by streetcar. Shopping districts were dispersed in neighborhood corner markets (many of the storefronts of these neighborhood stores still exist and in fact only went out of business in the early 1980s). Instead of driving to the grocery store, the grocery wagon came to you, as did the furniture maker and the milkman. It sounds insane to claim that this lifestyle would ever come back, and of course it won’t, leastways not in the exact same form. But the future of Winona lies more in its past than in its suburbs. In 10 years, many students may not be able to afford cars, and many seniors will not be able to drive them. Home heating costs may be a major expense. Many of us are already finding out that we can’t afford to heat the size of house that we thought we wanted back in the 1990s. This means that dorms will be more efficient for students, and small and walkable neighborhoods will look very appealing to the rest of us. The city council is attempting to take the long view, whereas both the students and the landlords are assuming that the status quo will remain. That seems to me dubious, and I applaud the bravery of the council for putting long-term thinking ahead of short-term gain. This may not be the best ordinance — time will tell — but the goal it articulates is the sensible one for our collective future. Jim Armstrong teaches literature, creative writing and composition at Winona State University. His two daughters both attend Bluffview Montessori, and his wife is an English teacher who hopes to teach in the public schools here some day. He is a poet whose latest book of poetry will be published by Milkweed Editions in March. Guest views are opinions of the author and don’t necessarily reflect the views of the Winona Daily News. They are published to stimulate thought and to provide an expanded forum on issues of local interest. Rental
ordinances will only cause new problems for city The ordinances that have been drafted admittedly have been written after hours of meetings and sometimes fiery feedback of college students, homeowners and politicians. The ordinances seek to fix parking problems, the number of students you can sandwich in a rental property and how many rental properties can sit on a particular block. But will these new laws really fix the problem, or just create a couple more?... Students
propose Web site to rate good, bad landlords Stene wants to model the project on a Web site that allows students to rate professors at different universities and colleges. He wants it to be more than just a place to list grievances, but a way for students to credit great landlords. A student committee will screen out inappropriate comments before publishing survey information, Stene said... Winona
is fine just the way it is 30 percent cap on rental housing per block in Winona. They say that this is not a direct shot at college students, but to be honest it is. In this 30 percent cap, however, there are a lot of holes. One is it will never take place. This cap has a grandfather clause so why are we going to pass this? There is no reason for this cap. Anyone you ask basically says it’s to make Winona better. Everything in Winona is just fine the way it is. I know because not only am I a WSU student but also a lifelong resident of Winona. This is a college town. The area around WSU is of course going to have a lot of college students living there, let that be. The college students mean this town no harm. I have heard that this cap will help spread the students around Winona. Well isn’t that great? So now instead of just the area around WSU being university living, the whole town is. For those of you who believe that the college kids are just a bunch of drunks and all we do is drink and party and think that’s why Winona is losing a family feel, you’re flat out wrong. That’s not what we are and to categorize us as that is simply unjust and wrong. But if you do feel that way, that around campus is looking terrible because of college students, why in the world would you want to spread us out around town — that seems like a good fix ... or not. This cap is not going to work so please tell your city council members what a bad idea it is and remember yes we are college students and we can do good for this community. ‘Apprentice
adults’ need community’s support Rental
housing proposals to go before city council The proposal, which caps city rental properties at 30 percent per block, has become the most contentious of the 14 the commission passed Monday afternoon. The proposed ordinances were created to address parking and rental issues around Winona State University. Nearly 75 percent of the blocks around the university have more than 30 percent rentals... Rental
limit proposal near WSU to face public hearing The Parking Advisory Task Force, created to address rental and parking issues around the Winona State University campus, made recommendations that include placing a 30-percent limit on rental properties per block, reducing the number of unrelated adults allowed to live together from five to three, limiting the number of boarders at an owner-occupied home to two, and several changes to street and residential parking ordinances. The rental limit ordinance, which has become the most controversial proposed change, affects nearly 75 percent of the blocks near the WSU campus. Half of the affected blocks contain from 50 percent to 80 percent rental properties. If passed, the ordinance will not affect current buildings, even if they’re sold; landlords would retain their licenses unless they are revoked or not renewed... Rental
housing proposal would hit hardest near WSU About half of the affected blocks have between 50 and 80 percent rental properties, significantly higher than the proposed ordinance limit, which is 30 percent. The planning commission will discuss the ordinance today as they get closer to making a final recommendation to the city council. The ordinance is the product of the Parking Advisory Task Force, which was formed earlier this year to address issues of parking and rental units around Winona State. The task force recommended the ordinance as a way to curtail run-down properties and ensure that neighborhoods retain a blend of residents. Winona State students have argued it will push rental problems farther into the city. There are about 5,500 Winona State students living off-campus, according to the school’s Residential Life office... Planning
Commission debates rental ordinance But if the city doesn’t adopt a limit, then it’s ignoring the big picture of revitalizing downtown and restoring pride in home ownership, said Winona City council member Deb Salyards, part of the task force that recommended the ordinance. Those comments, made during a debate at a special Planning Commission meeting, represent the two sides regarding a proposed ordinance that would limit city rental properties to 30 percent per block. The Planning Commission will decide Monday on whether to send the ordinance to a Nov. 14 public hearing. If they vote during the hearing to recommend it, it will move to the City Council. If passed, the ordinance will not affect current buildings; instead, it will bar future rental properties on any blocks that exceed the percentage... Task
force looks to limit rentals The committee is recommending the city pass an ordinance limiting each city block to 30 percent rental property. Rental properties already licensed would be grandfathered. Because the area surrounding the WSU main campus already exceeds the 30 percent threshold, no additional rental licenses could be granted in those neighborhoods. Citywide, about 34 percent of properties are rental, said city planner Mark Moeller. The recommendation is the most recent made by the group, formed after the city placed a temporary moratorium on the issuance of rental licenses in December... Landlords
get lowdown on city rental proposal The main topic of the night was the city's proposal to limit rental unit housing from five to three occupants and how a change would affect current rental properties. Attorney Mark Merchlewitz assured those in attendance that the city promised to grandfather certified rental properties under the old ordinance. He explained how eminent domain applied to the situation, and said unless the city reimburses landlords for income lost on existing rentals because of a new ordinance, it has to grandfather their properties... Parking
continues to bedevil city, WSU Panel
to address WSU-area parking, rental issues Winona
landlords favor most of proposed zoning code changes Landlords are in favor of reducing the number of non-related people who can share an apartment from five to three, said Kevin Brady, a co-chairman of the group of 50 to 60 landlords, who own about half of the city's estimated $200 million of residential rental property. They also support increasing the required number of off-street parking spaces from one-and-a-half per unit to two, provided it includes provisions for university housing. Current codes don't require any off-street parking for university dormitories. The proposal before the planning commission would change that to one space per bed; it would also require fraternities, sororities and rooming houses to provide one space per bed... City
decides to hold two public meetings on rental rules rewrite The city council imposed the moratorium on Dec. 20 in a move designed to give the commission time to finish its ongoing discussion of occupancy limits and parking requirements. When it last discussed the issue in early 2004, the commission agreed to lower the number of non-related people who can live together from five to three, said City Planner Mark Moeller. Other commission suggestions included requiring two off-street parking spaces per dwelling unit — the requirement is now 1.5 per unit — and requiring one parking space per bed for dormitory housing. That discussion stalled in June "at the staff level," Moeller said. Mayor Jerry Miller thanked the commissioners for their work and said he would like them to bring new ordinances to the council in less than six months. "Sometimes you get into some sticky situations," Miller said. "We appreciate you being on the frontline and taking the flak for us."... Demographic
changes have changed the housing needs of Winona's residents About a third of the city's housing is rental, Moeller said, and there's been a shift of fewer people per housing unit. However, the rental market currently has more units than needed due to Winona State University dorm expansion at Franklin and Sarnia streets, Moeller said. But changing rental homes back to single-family units would be no easy task, he added. According to the study, developers and builders say increasing construction and land costs preclude them from building at entry-level prices. Moeller said local businesses complain about the lack of affordable owner-occupied housing, as well as rentals, for families and young professionals. Landlords' incentive to provide rentals for the non-college population is low, he said, because they can't generate as much rent from single-family properties as they can from students... Rebuilding
the future of downtown Because she was relocating from St. Paul, the 43-year-old director of SMU's new women's leadership institute didn't want to buy a house right away, so she looked at apartments downtown. Vaughan had noticed the Washington Crossing building under construction when she interviewed for the job in January, so in March she came to look at the former Winona Middle School. Even in rough condition, she fell in love with the building's high ceilings and giant windows. She took a spacious two-bedroom apartment in what was once the 1915 building's library — a serendipitous home for someone with a master's in English who worked part time in a bookstore just to get an employee discount. "I love this, being able to walk everywhere," Vaughan said while decking her new digs with Christmas greenery. The public library is around the corner, a grocery store three blocks away... Winona's
rowdiness factor Property owners try to police their tenants or get the city police to regulate the behavior of drunken rowdy Winona State University students. The two groups are trying to find solutions to drunken scholars urinating on neighbors' rose bushes and passing out on the street. About 120 people attended a discussion Tuesday night at City Hall, where Mayor Jerry Miller, Councilman James Kahl and Director of Economic Development Judy Bodway headed a town hall meeting... Residents
fear rentals will bury neighborhoods
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