The Westmoreland
Apartments,
located more than
2 miles west of
campus, could be
sold, forcing
residents to move
by June 30.
Katie Gleason | Photographer
Westmoreland: Residents express concern
Continued from page 1A
Spencer View Apartments or into East
Campus graduate housing. There may
not be enough space for all residents
who wish to move into University
Housing complexes after the sale,
Eyster said.
“There may be some students
that are currently living in West
moreland that would like to contin
ue to live in University Housing that
may not be able to, but there is
other housing available in the com
munity,” Eyster said.
Before selling the property, the Uni
versity must first get permission from
the Oregon State Board of Higher Edu
cation, which will hear the proposal at
its early November meeting.
The properties were valued at
$15-$ 18 million earlier this year, but
that was a conservative appraisal,
Eyster said.
Money from the sale will go toward
improving housing close to campus,
although some funds could first go to
other purposes, Vice President for Fi
nance and Administration Frances
Dyke said.
“You may see us purchasing anoth
er piece of property and guaranteeing
an equivalent amount when housing
is ready to use the funds for develop
ment,” Dyke said.
The money wouldn’t completely
fund a new residence hall, but it could
held fund the construction or renova
tion of one, Eyster said.
“I don’t need enough money to to
tally pay for residence halls,” Eyster
said. “I just need some help.”
The average cost of a new 480-bed
residence hall is $34-$36 million, not
including land and infrastructure ex
tension costs, according to a University
press release.
Dyke and Eyster also discussed us
ing the money for property in the east
campus neighborhood.
The University wants to have mon
ey to buy land if the opportunity arises,
Dyke said.
“There are opportunities down
there with various partials of land
that could provide sites for housing
or for academic or research programs
or something else affiliated with the
University,” Dyke said.
Eyster wrote a letter dated Oct. 19 to
Westmoreland residents informing
them of the decision.
But residents contacted by the
Emerald Thursday evening were all
unaware the University is seeking to
sell the properties.
Some were concerned.
Cheelo Namalala, a 24-year-old
international student from Zambia,
said she doesn’t know if she’ll be
able to find housing as affordable as
the Westmoreland Apartments. Oth
er University-owned apartments
and Eugene apartments are more
expensive, she said, and she’s nerv
ous she won’t be able to find anoth
er racially diverse environment
where residents are tolerant.
According to a University press re
lease, 25 international students hold
leases at Westmoreland.
The sociology student plans to get
her undergraduate degree after sum
mer term but may need to search for
Eugene housing if she decides to at
tend graduate school here.
“What would I do if there was no
Westmoreland?” she said. “I just hope
that I’ll be able to find something
that’ll work for me, somewhere I’ll be
comfortable.”
Tina Jensen Augustine lives at the
Westmoreland Apartments with her
husband, an architecture graduate
student. Augustine said they chose
to live there because it is cheap and
convenient.
“It’s the most affordable we can
find,” she said.
Derrick Mathias, a graduate teach
ing fellow in the ecology and evolu
tionary program, said though he’ll be
graduating at the end of the school
year, he feels bad the apartments will
be sold because they are the most af
fordable ones for students.
“It’s not going to affect me, but I still
think it’s a shame,” Mathias said.
Approximately 39 children enrolled
at a Westmoreland childcare center
will also have to relocate for next year.
Dennis Reynolds, EMU child care
coordinator, told parents in an e
mail Thursday that the move will
impact the Child Care and Develop
ment Centers’ “ability to provide
continuing services for families cur
rently enrolled at Westmoreland
and for some at the Moss Street
Childrens (sic) Center who may
compete with displaced Westmore
land families for a reduced number
of total CCDC child care slots.”
University Housing has tried reno
vating the units to make them more
attractive to families, but Eyster spec
ulated that families are choosing to
pay more for larger apartments with
different amenities.
Westmoreland apartments range in
size from 375 to 500 square feet.
Approximately $190,000 was spent
on renovations for 37 apartments, 30 of
which are currendy occupied.
The Westmoreland property was
purchased in the 1960s using bonds,
Eyster said, which were repaid with
revenue from rent collections.
University Housing financed the
purchase of the property now occu
pied by the Riverfront Research Park
for the purpose of building
residence halls.
When the park was built on the
land in the 1980s, a plan to reimburse
housing approximately $220,000 in
2003 was drafted.
But in 2003, Melinda Grier, gener
al counsel to the University, con
cluded that money from a financial
ly independent department like
housing can be used by the Univer
sity for purposes not related to the
department.
Housing was given $34,746.
Though it is not known what ex
actly will be done with the West
moreland sale’s proceeds, Dyke said
there “will be a public acknowledg
ment of the commitment to hous
ing” at the time of the sale that will
guarantee it money.
Contact the news editors
at mcuniff@dailyemerald.com
andjpaben@dailyemerald.com
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