Welcome to 'the neighborhood': Housing areas regrouped

Students walk outside Amherst and Hanover buildings in the former Dominion, University Commons and Commonwealth housing area. The buildings are now part of the Central neighborhood.(Jenna Beaver) 
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Starting this semester the Office of Housing and Residence Life has grouped the eight housing areas into three residential neighborhoods—the Northwest, the Central and the Southeast.

The Northwest neighborhood currently includes Commonwealth, Northern Neck, Hampton Roads, the Student Apartments and the Townhouses. Once the Housing VIII-A project is completed, it, the Townhouses and the Student Apartments will become their own neighborhood, making Commonwealth, Hampton Roads and Northern Neck a separate neighborhood.

The Central neighborhood includes the four dorms that make up Chesapeake (Piedmont, Tidewater, Shenandoah and Blue Ridge) as well as Dominion, University Commons and Eastern Shore.

The Southeast neighborhood includes Liberty Square, Potomac Heights and President’s Park.

“We have more than doubled our housing options in the past five years,” said Denise Taylor, director of Housing and Residence Life. “It’s been a process of exponential growth—and we want to both keep up with that growth and plan for the future.”

The main goal behind the neighborhoods, said Taylor, was to create a better sense of community within the housing areas.

“Each neighborhood has special aspects about it that make it a great place to be,” said Taylor. “Once Housing VIII-A is completed, each neighborhood will have both its own dining facility and exercise facility, along with various places to hang out and get to know others.”

Before the neighborhoods were created, President’s Park was the only housing area that offered a 24-hour desk. The other desks offered varying hours inconsistent with each other. Now, each neighborhood has a 24-hour desk, allowing students to grab an extra key or loaner card in the middle of the night and without consulting a schedule of hours.

Another added feature of the neighborhoods is that each has its own support staff—an assistant director of housing, a housing services coordinator, and eventually, a facilities coordinator.

“This way, the staff can ‘take ownership’ of their neighborhood and oversee its daily operations and communications,” Taylor explained.

Student response to the neighborhood system has been mixed.

“I don’t like it,” said Mailee Zhou, a junior biology major. “I live in the Student Apartments, and it was much easier when we had our own desk. Northern Neck is too far away, especially for the little things like renting vacuums.”

“I think it’s a positive change,” said Sarah Thornton, a senior Criminology, Law and Society major, who also serves as a resident advisor in the Southeast neighborhood. “The neighborhoods focus on customer service, which we provide through the 24/7 desks. Also, every service you could need is [now] in your neighborhood--there is no need to go to the housing office in Potomac.”

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