Rising housing fees galvanize petition

The On-Campus Housing Council is demonstrating its opposition to
the increase in on-campus housing fees by organizing a student
petition.

The petition is available for all on-campus residents to sign at
tables designated for selling formal bids. The tables are set up in
the lobbies of residence halls and throughout on-campus
housing.

On-campus housing fees will increase by 8 percent for the next
academic year, as dictated by the housing master plan.

This money will be used to build more on-campus housing in order
to meet the university’s need to house the increasing number
of incoming students. The university projects 4,000 additional
students by 2010.

“All of the increase is directly going to build more bed
spaces.” said Michael Foraker, director of Housing.

Since Housing does not receive any aid from outside sources, the
money is needed to cover the payments for new housing.

A joint resolution by OCHC and the Undergraduate Students
Association Council argues that though the state mandates an
increase in the number of students admitted to the university, the
state is offering no solution in terms of housing these additional
students.

In an ongoing struggle to cover the costs associated with the
expansion of on-campus housing, the Office of Residential Life and
OCHC’s elected representatives are reviewing the existing
programs.

“Some programs will be modified or eliminated,” said
Foraker.

And though the budget designated for operating several programs
is being cut, residents will still be paying more and receiving
fewer services.

“Between the construction noise and the fee increase, we
are definitely stuck with the bad end of this deal,” said
Eileen Soriano, a first-year business economics student and Rieber
Hall resident.

“This would not be as big of an issue if we would get to
see the benefits firsthand,” she added.

As part of the UCLA Student Housing Master plan, the housing
fees are estimated to increase up to 35 percent in the next five
years.

By the time the Master Plan is completed, the fee increases will
affect approximately 9,044 UCLA undergraduates, and 2,000 UCLA
graduate students.

“I don’t pay for housing myself, but the fee
increase could in the long run disable some students from
attending,” said Amber Gosney, a first-year psychology
student and Hedrick Hall resident.

Contrary to what the Master Plan has projected, when it comes to
housing a larger number of students, the fee increase could have
side effects such as more students choosing to live off campus.

According to the OCHC Web site, a rising interest in off-campus
apartments could encourage owners of nearby apartments to raise
rental rates.

OCHC is not leaving the petitions as the only way to voice
student concerns.

In the upcoming week, the council will be sending out postcards
to on-campus residents for them to sign and return, expressing
their opposition to housing fee increases.

“We want to make the residents’ voice known,”
said Michelle Sivert, Hedrick Hall external vice president and OCHC
chairwoman.

The petitions, along with the signed postcards, will later be
sent to the University of California Office of the President.
However, they will have no impact on reducing next year’s
fees because that decision is already made, Foraker said.

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *