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University of Waterloo, Waterlod; Ontario volume 15, number 11 friday, august 30, 1974
Canvas tents eagerly of homeless students
Housing
crisis
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await in the federation’s this fall. The photographer
office tq settle the anticipated was randy hannigan.
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-Tent city, being erected:Students may well wind up reminding other students of it - awareness living in tents erected on ‘and the resulting “could bring students together campus by the Federation of to pressure the- administration Students for the first few, weeks to do something”. Harding of classes as there is a severe also urged council to “mobilize housing shortage in the Kitfor a tent city now or else chener-Waterloo area this fat!. the students we The federation unanimously ’ betray, U n.moved by represent .‘L passed a motion funding “tent Harding’s emotional plea city” to the tune of $3,500 after engineering councillor Eric a long drawn out students’ Pugh said “tent city might last Wedcouncil meeting condone the very housing we nesday. now find substandaid” for It is According to chief “tent -city little more than “clapping one organizer John Shortall there big -tent with a lotta people” could be as many as 500 somewhat like the 1968 students in d.ire need of acWoodstock festival which was commodation who might take notorious for being a m_ess. part in the federation project Pugh felts on the one hand which is expected to last two “tent city” might be “one big weeks. Shortall also said there bash” while on the other it might be a conflict with the administration as “might do the -Federation of university Students some harm’.‘. He also president Burt Matthews noted asked whether the campus his disapproval of “anything of security will be approached to this sort” at a meeting last f police the event and Xill week. Publications .dhairman Terry holding council’s.rapt attention Harding when introducing the ‘he said the “tent city” scheme benefit from * motion to fund the project said is “trying to somebody else’s plight and to “pressure works” when applied make it into a desperation - in such a manner as “tent city” play”. for it brings the housing problem out in the open thus Shortall strongly objected to
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Pugh’s remarks saying “we will house only those people we believe will not have anywhere to stay and the idea is not just to have a big splash in the newspapers.” Federation president Andy Telegdi said “we- are trying to do the best-we can for students by making the housing problem very much apparent”. The idea is “to keep this in the public eye” he said. Rounding up the pro“tent city” chorus, Harding reminded council once again of the need for a “confrontation stance in order to pressure the administration into doing and he cited something” student radicalism of past years as proof of his contention. “We need to take- the housing issue to the board of governors and make them pressure Matth-ews into doing something” he said. Engineering representative Max Mercer felt there should be a charge for those students using tent facilities on a nightly basis and he suggested the charge to be $1.50 per night. Mercer’s suggestion was
rejected because it was pointed out to council by Harding that “a dollar fifty a night for seven days is very close to the price students, have to pay now for low qualityhousing”. In essence he said the federation would be taking undue advantage of students in a desperate situation. Other counc’illors also felt that to charge a price for the tent facilities would reduce the number of participants in the event. Earlier on, university housing direcor Cal Vinnicombe <entertained council with the various facts and figures of student housing. He said there w,ere in the past few weeks fifty stude.nts per day looking for off campus rooms in the central housing office, and during the next week he expected 100 to 200 students “who will have a problem.” Vinnicombe listed what he called the “inadequacies” one finds in-the off camps rooms; some places -the resident is only allowed “one bath a week” while in others the resident can “never take .a bath”. Frequently
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one encounters _ certain behaviour restrictions imposed upon by the landl,ord which are “against no law”, Vinnicombe said. The housing office always sends to incoming freshmen brochures emphasizing the short supply of adequate housing in the community, but “students god bless them never read a goddam thing we send them” Vinnicombe stated; tie also pointed out that as -of Wednesday there were only 88 beds available which he suspected were too “substandard” for anyone to want. Rita Schneider and Sandy McDonald, members of the federation funded “Housing ‘74 summer project,_both informed council that last weekend there were 712 students looking for housing i-n the federation off ice, and “today (Wednesday) there were forty”. “Housing ‘74”. apart from staffing an information desk on available accommodation, has conducted several surveys on the policy of various apartments with regards to renting to students. . -john morris
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native is no housing at all; the substandard rooms begin to look fairly reasonable. Students are ,finding more and more attics and basements being ’ converted into rooms, as homeowners are assured of renting them to students regardless of the condition. At the same time, there seems to be fewer of the better rooms available for a variety of reasons, including mortgages being paid off and income tax hassles. Although there will probably always ‘be students who will live in substandard housing accommodations, the problem can only be solved if more The annual housing shortage that adequate housing is made available to arises each fall as students return to students. In this way students could campus, has lead to an increased refuse rooms or accommodation _ , which number of sub-standard rooms being was unacceptable. offered to students. The administration has clearly inAccommodation can be classified as dicated that it is not going to be held substandard for many reasons. The responsible for the housing shortage, three most common complaints are since it has no legal oblication to regarding the bhysical condition of the provide the student with housing. rooms, the lack of privileges, such as Although some persons in the adtaking more than one bath a week, or ministration have expressed concern being allowed to smoke etc. and the over the fact that while the university is high cost to rent these rooms. drawing students to the city, it is doing _ Although the University of Waterloo nothin to help alleviate the housing administration housing office does shortage. Due to this unconcerned nothing to rate’ the rooms as subattitude of the administration,. the standard or otherwise, Wilfred Laurier Federation of Students has had to come offers the following list of furnishings up with someshort term solutions. as a minimum standard for off campus One of these\ solutions involves accommodation: blocks from the renting aprtment 1 bed per student apartment owners and then sub letting 1 study table or desk per student them to students. According to a 1 straight back chair per student spokesman for the Waterloo Regional 1 desk lamp per student +%part.ment Owners Association, this is a metal waste basket the$only way that many vacant apart-, mirror ments will be opened up to students. _ ample drawer and closet space The association would have preferred a bookcase or bookshelves . the administration to guarantee rents Although it is possible to a certain and damages, but has indicated that it extent to regulate what physical objects would accept the Federation as -, constitute a minimum standard of off guarantors for the students. The actual campus housing, it is very difficult to mechanics of renting these blocks and regulate what rules and regulations that then subletting them need to be worked a home owner may apply to the student. out and therefore it is felt that this .The homeowner can legally set solution will only happen towards the whatever standard/of behavior he wants end of September. A tent city has-is on the tenants that he leases rooms to. being erected in order that students will For instance, rules such as no visitors, ‘have some place to stay until these ’ only one bath a week, no smoking and apartment units become available. numerous others are within the rights The Federation of Students is urging of the landlord to set as’conditions of all students who do not have housing to, sub standard ac-leasing the rooms. Therefore, it is up to refuse any the student to make sure that he or she commodations and to stay in the tents knows what those restrictions are until the apartments are available. For beforda deposit is paid or an agreement the location of the tents or for more signed. It is fairly obvious though, that information -on the housing situation a student faced with a choice between please contact 1the Federation of no housing or accepting the restrictions Students housing office located in the federation offices in the campus center. ‘put on by the. landlord will end uf~ The officeis open from 9: 00 am to 9: 00 accepting the restrictions. The same pm monday to friday and 8: 00 am to argument applies to the overpriced and substandard rooms, when the alter10: 00 pm on weekends and holidays.
Sub standard, Housing
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‘member: Canadian university press (CUP). The chevron is typeset by dumont press graphix and published by the federation of students incorporated, university of water-loo. Content is the sole responsibility of the chevron editorial staff. Offices are located in the campus centre; (519) 885-1660, or univer&ty local 2331. This special issue was brought to you by john morris, andrew telegdi and randy hannigan, with a little help from our council members. The emergency council meeting held Wednesday evening had to set a record for the most number of amendments to the amendments that amended the previous’amendment ad infinitum. However \?re hope that this issue will emphasize the fact that some action has to be taken to alleviate the housing crisis. nrh.
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large me and two. bodrooph apartmenfs. All utlllties Included. I Cbntral Kitchener. No students. Cali 9’ 576-8787. dve31I ;
Most apartment haye vacancies but not for students. Unless there is a sudden change in the attitude of landlords towards students the 7.7 vacancy rate Fyi/l remain. Some apartment owners saidklakm that it is more economical to leave the apartments and use it as a tax write off rather than renting them to students.
I. Tent city
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For more information, location etc., -please contact the feder’ation of , . students housing, office located in the federatioti offices in the campus center. . hours : 9 : Ooam to 9 : OOpmweekdays 8:OOam to 1O:OOpm weekends and holidays phone ext /2405 or 885-0370 /
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