New Haven Independent: Westville Skeptical On UNH Plan

Westville Skeptical On UNH Plan

by Melinda Tuhus | March 25, 2008 8:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (12)

Joanne Scuilli (left in photo) heard a promise three years ago about the new apartment complex across the street from her home — then returned Monday night to hear a pitch to break that promise.

Sculli and 70 Westville neighbors listened intently at a contentious public meeting at Beecher School as the president of the University of New Haven pitched a plan to fill up the large apartment complex with students — exactly the outcome residents had sought to avoid when the complex was built.

That complex is the 293-unit Wintergreen apartments. A company called Metropolitan Developers got permission to build it on the site of an abandoned factory with the specific condition that it not be used as a student dorm.

Now the developer wants to devote a portion of the complex — a 60-unit building — to house 200 UNH students this coming school year.

After hours of angry debate, neighbors agreed to work on a committee to explore making that possible. But it’s by no means a done deal.

Mary Faulkner, chair of the Westville Management Team, will sit on that seven-member community committee. “People were really upset because the meeting wasn’t run well,” she said Tuesday morning. “It was basically a free-for-all and things got really rowdy by the end.”

The seven-member community panel will meet with Metropolitan and UNH at an unspecified future date in order to have some community representation in the process of amending the Planned Development District (PDD), the special zoning designation that allowed the developers to put in such a dense project in the first place.

“Trying to get the PDD amended is a lengthy process and might not fit into their time frame,” she added. She said an alderman told her the earliest it could be voted on would be June — and that’s with completely smooth sailing, which seems unlikely.

There are obviously trust issues with the developers,” she said.

UNH Students Are Different?

steve%20kaplan.jpg The university sent a phalanx of officials and student leaders to the Beecher School to promote their cause of renting 200 of the 350 units as student housing. University President Steven Kaplan (pictured) said he returned early from schmoozing big donors in Florida so he could plead his case in person.

The 70 residents heard how these students are not like students at “other universities” — i.e., Southern Connecticut State University and Quinnipiac University, both notorious party schools. Kaplan claimed UNH students have caused virtually no problems either on campus or off. Three hundred students already live off-campus in West Haven under similar arrangements.

The neighbors heard about how the majority of students at the school are majoring in public safety or criminal justice, and so have more to lose than other students if any bad behavior follows them into their job search.

Kaplan said he was begging the community for its help, to agree to a nine-month leasing arrangement with the developers starting in August until adequate housing is built on the West Haven campus.

Metropolitan Developers partner Carlos Vasquez began the meeting by announcing that 105 units have already been leased. He expects the rest to be rented by October if they are not rented to UNH students. But given the current state of the economy — and the rents of the complex that range from $1,060 for a one-bedroom to $2,600 for a three-bedroom unit — some in the audience were skeptical about that forecast.

“You’re bailing out the developer and the city,” one woman shouted at Kaplan. Residents were concerned about possible vacant units if the developer were not able to rent up the whole complex.

He said the administration would screen all the students who might live in the complex, and it would be open only to juniors and seniors. A shuttle bus would take them to and from campus, as well as to other destinations around New Haven. They wouldn’t be prohibited from owning cars — increased traffic was one concern expressed — but neither would any other residents of the complex should it not be rented to UNH.

“The students that want to live in this housing are subjecting themselves to pretty heavy rules,” he said. “They want those constraints; they want the quiet; they want the study environment; they want to live with other students.”

Joanne Scuilli lives across the street from the complex. She recalled how three years ago neighbors were concerned that the housing wouldn’t be leased up and would be turned into dorms. So a clause was included in the zoning variance Metropolitan Developers were granted that explicitly prohibited dormitory housing.

“At the time they absolutely assured us they had done all the market research and that there would be no problem filling this development,” Scuilli said. “And now here we are three years later, and exactly what we suspected would happen is happening.”

Three student leaders and Dean of Students Becky Johnson (on right) explained that if the units were considered student housing, resident advisers would live there to provide oversight, guidance and a firmer link to student life. Johnson explained the disciplinary process if any of them were to break the rules of quiet hours beginning at 8 p.m. and “courtesy hours” of respecting the privacy of other residents at all hours: they would be written up and “removed” if the behavior continued, Kaplan said

One woman said, “UNH is a third party in this. Our disagreement is with the party that made the agreements” that would be violated if a dorm were created in the building.

Another said, “I personally don’t care if students move in. But I’m damn mad at the developer and I always have been.”

Tom Talbot from the City Plan Department said allowing a dorm would require an amendment to the Planned Development District to be approved by the Board of Aldermen. He added that if it was for just nine months, it was possible no such vote would be required. Kaplan and Wintergreen attorney Michael Lasso are researching that possibility.

Many people were worried that allowing UNH to move students in would set a precedent, allowing in other students less hardworking and courteous than UNH students are purported to be. There was also concern about policing with so many additional young people, especially due to the number of bars within walking distance of the complex.

Kaplan said right now UNH police officers don’t have jurisdiction in New Haven, but he is in discussion with city officials about some accommodation.

Comments

Posted by: on whalley | March 25, 2008 8:40 AM

But given the current state of the economy -- and the rents of the complex that range from $1,060 for a one-bedroom to $2,600 for a three-bedroom unit -- some in the audience were skeptical about that forecast.

Yeah, I remember the first time I rode by and saw that sign. It is beyond me why if somebody can afford 1K-2K a month just for housing costs that they would pick a condo of all things in any neighborhood in New Haven. It's essentially ghetto right across the street and just a block to the right is one college house after the other. True, past the ghetto there is a park but that side of the park is littered with trash and bottles from the ghetto residents and once a month during the Summer you get to watch the fire department rescue some idiot who thought it was a good place to climb. Score one more for living in a college town! So many idiots we'll never run out!

I guess if you're moving here for work and have no clue about the area it would be pretty easy to get suckered in.

Posted by: Stephen H | March 25, 2008 9:32 AM

-It's essentially ghetto right across the
-street and just a block to the right is one
-college house after the other.

I lived in the apartments on Austin Street from Jan 2005-Jan 2008. The neighborhood isn't really ghetto with the exception of the buildings on Springside ave, the trashy green house across the street.

There have been very few issues in the neighborhood.

The new apartments have dropped a good deal in price since their initial offering and if you look online you will see several evictions pending already.

No one wants to bay $1060 for a one bedroom when they can pay $800 1 block away. These apartments will soon be accepting secion 8 for sure.

The new apartments were one reason I moved. Both the expanded senior housing and Wintergreen presented added traffic issues, etc.

Other reasons included high insurance rates, 10 mile commute to Seymour, and last but not least "value".

Folks are leaving New Haven as I am. Crime, taxes, insurance, and rent are less elsewhere. The current state of the economy will only fuel this exodus.

Posted by: Stephen H | March 25, 2008 9:50 AM

Here are some facts on Wintergreen:

http://www.apartmentratings.com/rate/CT-New-Haven-Wintergreen-of-Westville-Apartments.html

(reveiws of the apartments by current tenants highlighting bad management, poor construction, and malfunctioning fire saftey equiptment)

http://www.jud2.ct.gov/housing/search_premises.asp?dcy=NEW+HAVEN&da1=400+BLAKE&da2=&dsc=all&action=Search

(Top top it off 4 evictions since December)

Sounds like a great place!!

Posted by: Fonseca | March 25, 2008 1:08 PM

I'm hearing the age ole "Not in my backyard!" Opps..there goes the hood college students gone wild at Senor Pancho's.

Posted by: on whalley | March 25, 2008 1:24 PM

Senor Panchos is gone.

It's some place called "What?" now. The important thing is that it's still a bar. God forbid New Haven have only 499 bars instead of 500.

Posted by: Johnnie Jersey by the Sea | March 25, 2008 2:13 PM

I'm sorry I missed that "free-for-all and things got really rowdy by the end" meeting.

A friend reported back on a community meeting in Westville she attended a few months back. She was shaken and appalled at the lack of civility.

Being from another part of the country (NYC!) she vowed to stay away from these gatherings because she couldn't believe her possible neighbors were so mean spirited and rude.

I feel sorry for anyone who gets grouchy uptight westville neighbors.

Posted by: Chris L | March 25, 2008 2:38 PM

Stephen, if you actually look at those who were evicted it was for "Non payment of rent" which is only there fault for accepting the tenant. I really dont have an issue with this as a soon to be Westville resident. If they actually follow through with RA's and labeling it as quiet floors it should be good for the local merchants. One request i would have is that you make it a "Dry" dorm. That way you pretty much lock in the fact that you are dealing with straight edge students.

Posted by: DowntownNewHaven | March 25, 2008 3:09 PM

How about accommodating the students downtown? That would make more sense, as there is a bus route that runs directly from the New Haven Green to UNH.

Posted by: PowerToThePeople | March 25, 2008 3:48 PM

I don't really have an opinion on the students. Students are students and will do the same thing that students around the country do. (See the recent reports on concerns about the drinking binges of college students. I went to seminaries for graduate studies and heard complaints about the noise and partying by those who lived in the dorms.)

Two things bother me about this. First, the developers lied. They said they wouldn't bring in students and now they want to do just that. But I don't know why that should surprise me. That's what they do.

More importantly, however, is the fact that all of these apartments remain vacant when the city is on an apartment building spree. Almost every planned development is calling for dense residential units. Where are the people coming from to move into these units?

It seems to me that there is a lack of an overall plan that is realistic in predicting the future of this city. Our planning tends to start with "how much can we get in taxes and building fees."

Posted by: Your Tax Dollars at Work | March 26, 2008 6:36 PM

It's a really bad project, poorly planned, badly designed and cheaply built -- a textbook example of the kinds of bad things that can happen at the peak of a real estate bubble when lenders are just focused on getting the money out the door.

No matter what they do, it will be several years before this thing is straightened out -- if ever.

Posted by: Edward_H | March 30, 2008 11:28 AM

Are they taking Section 8 tenants yet?

Posted by: jason | March 31, 2008 2:39 PM

As a student at UNH I can honestly say I wouldn't want to live at wintergreen; sure its nice buts its also 3 miles away. You have to remember that just because the school wants to stick people in wintergreen it doesn't mean students will want to live there. UNH shuttle service is unreliable to say the least, the feeling of school community would be lost, and I'm sure the school would end up charging the students a ridiculous amount of money (on top of the inflated tuition we pay already). Hopefully the school has a back up plan because if not quite a few students will be apartment hunting come next fall.

New Haven Independent

Westville Skeptical On UNH Plan

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