University Business - August 2006 - (Page 71)

Common Ground Sky-high prices, housing shortages, and cheaper homes in crumbling neighborhoods have been a turn-off for many job seekers OW MANY PROFESSORS WOULD H live with their students in the and a source of frustration for recruiters. same building? Apparently, sev- e r a l dozen faculty members at Barnard another four acres next to the homes and will be completed early next year. College N.Y. don't seem to mind. In addition, last year the school broke ground on the other project, Univer- In January, the independent college of sity Heights. It will offer 42 two- and three-story townhouses, some with out- liberal arts and sciences for women, lo- door patios, side yards, and exterior decks. cated in Manhattan, created the school's But this development involves a unique arrangement between the university first shared faculty-student residence hall. and the Elks Club. The Elks sold roughly half of its six-acre hilltop site to the Called Cathedral Gardens, approximately school. In exchange, the university will build a $3 million, 13,000-square-foot Elks Lodge on the other three acres and make ongoing payments over a 99-year 24 professors and their families, along period to pay for the remainder of the land's cost and maintain the facility. Dick- with 91 students, call it home. erson says that $100 per home will be diverted to the Elks each month, totaling Floor s seven through nine of the 10- approximately $50,000 a year. story building Since the Fullerton campus plans on hiring between 80 and 100 faculty a are reserved year for the next five years, these projects just scratch the surface. Dickerson says for faculty. But that between 500 and 700 faculty and staff who are renting want to purchase a others also live home. side-by-by-side They are our primary market, [and they] have not been able to make the jump to home ownership, he says, adding that the school is currently negotiat- with students ing with six different developers. We have a need for an awful lot of homes and on floors two a lot of things are underway to try to accommodate that need. through six in CSU, Long Beach found itself in a similar situation. What the institution some cases, lacked in money and land, it made up for in creativity. even sharing a Within the past six months, officials there have partnered with October 5 De- common bed- velopment, a local developer that is building a high-rise project with 400 lofts room wall . at the site of an old building that used to house the Press Telegram newspaper in A lounge and downtown Long Beach, says Mo Tidemanis, director of real estate at the CSU Long Beach Foundation. They agreed to purchase 60 units at the developer's laundry facility cost which is expected to run 25 percent to 30 percent below market value are on the top and pass those savings on to their faculty and staff. floor as well The lofts, to be completed in 2008, range from 600 to 1,300 square feet and as access to a are less than five miles from campus. Since there's an oversupply of retail space in rooftop terrace. the downtown area, the developer is donating roughly 17,000 square feet on two Pa i g e West, different floors to the university to operate various educational programs. Students living here may an assistant Although the deal may appear one-sided, it still offers distinct advantages to say in class, See you at professor in the home, professor. the developer. Tidemanis says that having 60 presold units lowers the risk. What's more, these units are above and beyond what the firm could normally build. school's Depart- The developer will get a density bonus from the city that he wouldn't get oth- ment of Anthropology, lives with her family erwise, says Tidemanis, adding that it will probably amount to two extra stories on the building's ninth floor. being allowed. The city really wants to help the university tackle this [housing] T h e r e are moments where you see problem. We play an important role in the community. The developer will be able [students] in the elevators and stairwells to build more units, which makes him more money, and the university can help who may be in your class, says West. It's the developer politically get his project approved. It's a three-way win-win-win. kind of fun and different to interact with Since responses from faculty and staff surveys indicate a demand for up to them when they're not being students and 600 more units, and only 11 percent of the families in Long Beach can afford the median home price about $500,000 , Tidemanis is also discussing similar oppor- being adults. tunities with three other developers. He says people moving to the area from other states can't come close to affording local homes. universitybusiness.com August 2006 | 71 FacltyHsng.indd FacltyHsng.indd 71 7/21/06 2:15:02 PM http://universitybusiness.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of University Business - August 2006

Contents
College Index
Advisory Board
Company Index
Editor's Note
People Watch
Sense of Place
Stats Watch
Viewpoint
Financial Aid
On the Hill
Admissions
Future Shock
An Education in AV Technology
Retention Intentions
Endowment Management
Good Data In, Good Data Out
Sticking with the Tried & True
Home, Sweet Home
Faculty Issues in Online Education
Internet Technology
What's New
Calendar of Events
Direct Connect
End Note

University Business - August 2006