A resolution introduced by St. Paul City Councilmember Jay Benanav (Ward 4) threatens to reduce the off-campus housing available to students at Macalester and at other St. Paul colleges and universities.

Benanav's resolution is currently under review by the St. Paul City Planning Commission and, according to Benanav's office, will be brought before the City Council in the next two months. Included is a clause that states "no student dwelling shall be located within 350 feet of another lot used for a student dwelling." The resolution would not affect apartment buildings or fraternity and sorority houses. Macalester's language houses and cottages would not be effected either.

Benanav says that the 350-foot requirement would be "grandfathered" and that no current residents would be forced to move if the Council passes his resolution. Only new leases would be subject to the clause, he said. The document itself, however, makes no mention of this "grandfathering" protection.

The resolution also includes a clause reiterating an existing law that prevents more than four unrelated persons from living together in one house or duplex.

This extension to the St. Paul zoning code has the potential to drastically disperse the city's off-campus student population. According to data from the 2000 census and data and Macalester Geography student research, there is a heavily disproportionate number of students living in Benanav's Ward 4, including the majority of off-campus Macalester students.

Benanav believes that there will not be a student housing shortage in the Macalester-Groveland area. However, Benanav said that he was not aware of the on-campus housing crunch that Macalester is currently experiencing. Dean of Students Laurie Hamre has her doubts about the repercussions of the resolution. "I'm just afraid that [Benanav] has not thought about the consequences," Hamre said.

The Ward 4 Councilmember says his resolution is not intended to adversely affect students in any way. Rather, he claims that his goal is to protect students from deadbeat landlords.

Benanav hopes that the clause in his proposal requiring landlords to register student dwellings with the city will force landlords to be more accountable to their student tenants.

Through regulation of student housing, Benanav hopes that students' landlords will be forced to take better care of their student homes. He believes that students are less likely to complain about the disrepair of their residences than other tenants. "Frankly students are not [in their residences] long enough to worry about repairs," he said. "Students have the right to quality housing. There's no reason they should live in houses that are not up to everyone else's standards."

According to Dean Hamre, however, students often are not looking at the same level of housing as other renters. "Students don't want to live on Summit," she said, pointing out that they do not demand the same kinds of amenities as families, and often are not able to pay as much in rent.

Benanav's Legislative Aide Jane Prince said she understood that students might feel targeted by the resolution, but that when students do not demand adequate maintenance of their homes, landlords can easily take advantage of them.

While Hamre agrees that landlord neglect is an issue for students, she feels that this resolution is not the best way to solve the problem. On the contrary, she believes that the overall effect of Benanav's proposal would be to penalize students by taking away their housing. She does concede, however, that the resolution would benefit the few Macalester students every year who look to the administration for help dealing with neglectful landlords.

Director of Residential Life Sarah Griesse also expressed concern about the potential impact of the resolution. "If it is really meant to address landlords, then there's always been laws about that. I don'treally see where this is coming from, what the main impetus is here," she said.

Griesse added that, if the resolution is passed, colleges in the neighborhood, including Macalester, would be forced to evaluate the new zoning regulations' impact on students and start developing ways to alleviate potential problems. She noted the need for city cooperation to build on-campus housing, and said she would be surprised if the city would prevent schools from building while simultaneously pushing students back on campus. "We all have finite resources," she said.

Benanav claimed that his office had received support for the resolution from the Dean of Students offices at both Hamline and St. Thomas. Dean Hamre said that neither of her counterparts at those schools had heard anything about the resolution until she spoke with them.

Benanav also claimed that his office had spoken with Myra Garnes, Assistant Dean of Students at Macalester. Garnes was unavailable for comment, but according to Hamre, did attend an informational meeting in Nov. 2002 concerning an earlier draft of the resolution. Hamre added that Garnes was never again contacted about the meeting.

The councilmember acknowledged that the rights of students were not the only impetus for the resolution. He said that he is trying to achieve a balance between student renters and the rest of the community. "I'm the last person to suggest we ought to regulate students," he added.

When landlords allow student housing to deteriorate, Benanav said, there is a corresponding decrease in property value that impacts surrounding properties. Griesse also acknowledged the concerns that families in the neighborhood may have about housing quality. "I certainly can understand people being concerned about their homes," she said.

According to Benanav, it is student housing in the Merriam-Park area that is most problematic. "I wouldn't want my son to live there," he said. As Hamre points out, however, the resolution would affect the entire city of St. Paul uniformly.

Due to the uncertainties surrounding the resolution, Benanav has expressed interest in speaking directly with the Macalester community. As of press time, no date has been finalized, but according to Hamre, early next week is a possibility.

"We need to work together to safeguard students' rights," Hamre said.