College students deserve a home

There is a student housing crisis in southwest Kitchener that the city will not solve by rejecting one large development.

To be sure, last week’s decision by a city council committee to block a townhouse complex designed for roughly 175 Conestoga College students delighted longtime residents of Lower Doon fighting to preserve their neighbourhood as a family enclave.

The 9-2 vote, which will likely be ratified by council on April 24, is reasonable, too — as far as it goes.

The proposal would put too many students on too small a piece of property in stacked townhouses that would be too high for the surrounding single-family homes, as well as too close to their backyards.

Meanwhile, the city is planning a major study of student housing in the area next year.

Waiting until that work is complete before approving large student residential complexes makes sense.

But that still leaves unanswered the million-dollar question: What comes next?

Residents of established neighbourhoods near the college seem to want to keep Lower Doon the way it is — or as they first knew it.

They want it to be primarily a place for families and not, if possible, for students who come and go from one year to the next.

The trouble is, that part of Kitchener has been in the throes of disruptive change for several years as more and more single, detached homes are converted to multi-bedroom student rentals for eight or 10 people, some of whom end up living in renovated garages.

Longtime neighbours dislike this trend, along with the unwanted noise, garbage, unruly behaviour, illegally parked cars and untidy properties they insist go with it. That’s understandable. It’s also understandable that students want, need and deserve good accommodation near their school.

This college is a valuable part of Waterloo Region. It exists to prepare young people for good jobs. Many Conestoga graduates find employment in this community which benefits greatly from the work they do and the taxes they pay.

While the city may be right to reject this specific proposal near Doon Valley Drive, there were aspects of the development that made sense and could be copied in the future.

Each unit was to be licensed as a separate lodging house, which would have given the city the authority to inspect it yearly and insist it meet proper standards.

There was also to be an on-site supervisor to keep things in order. Doing nothing on the city’s part is no solution. Enrolment at Conestoga has risen steadily over the years and with it the demand for student housing near the college.

Allowing the existing neighbourhood to be transformed piecemeal as house after house is converted for student rentals hardly seems ideal.

In contrast, designing and building housing complexes specifically for students, regulating the buildings and integrating them into the neighbourhood would benefit both the students and residents of Lower Doon. That’s the target city hall should aim for. That’s the future area residents should help to shape and then, ultimately, accept.