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The Michigan Daily (ISSN 0745-967) is
published every Thursday during the
spring and summer terms by students
at the University of Michigan. One copy
is available free of charge to all readers.
Additional copies may be picked up at the
Daily’s office for $2. Subscriptions for fall
term, starting in September, via U.S. mail
are $110. Winter term (January through
April) is $115, yearlong (September
through April) is $195. University affiliates
are subject to a reduced subscription rate.
On-campus subscriptions for fall term
are $35. Subscriptions must be prepaid.
The Michigan Daily is a member of The
Associated Press and The Associated
Collegiate Press.
2
Thursday, June 22, 2017
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
NEWS
Increasing affordable housing options
remains top concern for students, city
In 2016, 599 students
listed an Ypsilanti
zip code as their home
or permanent address
By KAELA THEUT
Summer Daily News Editor
Rather than merely walking
across the Diag to get to class,
Music, Theatre & Dance senior
Mackenzie Larrance’s morning
routine consists of fighting traffic
during her daily commute across
town from her Ypsilanti residence.
Her reasoning behind renting
an apartment so far from central
campus? The rapidly rising cost of
living for both students and Ann
Arbor residents.
“I decided to live outside of
Ann Arbor for two reasons: I had
a car, and it was less expensive,”
Larrance said. “I’m also in a
serious relationship where my
boyfriend and I have been dating
for almost 5 years. He and I can’t
afford an apartment in downtown
Ann Arbor without getting a full
time job. It’s also difficult finding
other couples like ourselves who
would want to split the costs of
living.”
Larrance further noted her
expenses for living in Ypsilanti
are almost a thousand dollars
cheaper than if she were to rent an
apartment in Ann Arbor.
“I’d say on average, I pay
approximately $1,400 a month
when living in Ypsilanti,” she
said. “This includes rent, food,
gas and other college expenses.
For a single room apartment in
Ann Arbor, that’s about $1,200
which is $400 more than my
apartment in Ypsilanti. Then
once you add my other expenses,
I would be paying $2,200 a
month. I took out gas in that
calculation too.”
According to the U.S. Census
Bureau, the median rate for rent
in Ann Arbor has increased 14
percent from 2010 to 2015 and
now sits at approximately $1,075
per month — despite the amount
of high-density housing areas
also rising by 32 percent. It is
important to note this number
accounts for the entire city, so it
may not reflect the experiences
of students living in areas such
as Kerrytown or South Campus.
However,
rent
prices
are
high enough that in 2016, 599
students,
such
as
Larrance,
listed an Ypsilanti zip code as
either their permanent or local
address — a number troubling to
urban planners.
A 2015 study, commissioned
by the Washtenaw County Office
of Community and Economic
Development and prepared by czb
L.L.C., a Virginia-based urban
planning
and
neighborhood
development
consulting
firm,
stated the increasing economic
inequality between the two cities
will negatively affect the county.
Unless policies are changed,
the report states Ann Arbor
will only continue to become
more expensive, while Ypsilanti
property values will plummet due
to high turnover rate.
“The result will be a county
decreasingly
affordable
and
out of balance and, eventually,
unsustainable, as some parts
of the county possibly degrade
beyond a point of no return,
and
others
grow
in
value
beyond a point that’s ever again
affordable,” the report reads.
“The
imbalance
in
income,
education
and
opportunity
between
the
jurisdictions,
along with the socioeconomic
segregation that goes with it, will
hamper the regional economic
growth potential of the area.”
As a result of this report, in
2015, Ann Arbor City Council
members voted 10-1 to adopt
affordable housing goals such
as creating nearly 2,800 new
affordably priced rental units by
2035. They also hope to augment
demand for housing in Ypsilanti
by 4,187 units through measures
such
as
increasing
energy
efficiency
and
tearing
down
vacant buildings.
In
a
Central
Student
Government
2016
fall
panel,
Councilmember
Zachary
Ackerman (D–Ward 3), who is
a recent University graduate,
and then-County Commissioner
Yousef Rabhi, who is now an
Ann Arbor state representative,
expressed concern that increased
housing costs would continue to
lower socioeconomic diversity
within Ann Arbor as students
move elsewhere in search of
cheaper rent.
“(Ann Arbor’s) diversity is
slowly escaping us,” Rabhi said.
“If we don’t work hard and make
sure we have our full options on
where to live, not only will our
student body become less diverse,
our community will become less
diverse.”
Yet, despite the commitment
by city officials to work towards
increasing housing diversity in
Washtenaw County, the issue
remains at the forefront of the
minds of both University students
and city residents — especially in
regards to the influx of luxury
housing being constructed in
downtown Ann Arbor.
DESIGN BY MICHELLE PHILLIPS
Read more at MichiganDaily.com
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