Returning students put emphasis on housing needs in Rhode Island

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — With colleges set to return to classes as soon as next week, thousands of students are moving back to the Capitol City and all across the Ocean State.

With more than a dozen colleges in Rhode Island, the students need somewhere to stay every year.

They have a range of options, with students living in dorms, commuting from home, or living in an off-campus apartment.

When it comes to the latter, it can be a great benefit for local economies, but also a burden on already struggling housing markets.

“We’ve just simply been underproducing housing units, in particular rental units for a number of years in Rhode Island, our last kind of building peak was in the 1980s,” Director of HousingWorks R.I. Brenda Clement said. “The solution is to build more. You know, maybe more dormitory space in communities where it makes sense but also, you’re looking for different options where we can repurpose and reuse buildings to create housing, not only for the students but also for the workers.”

Walking that line can be a difficult but important task for developers and property managers to consider as they help house students.

“I do agree that it’s an issue where, you know, people are buying normal, residential homes, and converting them,” Amicus Properties Co-founder Austin Brooks said. “We’ve seen it everywhere and it can create friction and also creates a shortage and pushes some of those families out.”

Solutions to these issues are unique to every community, with those around the University of Rhode Island passing ordinances that limit how many students can be in a home together.

Other communities have enacted specific zoning laws to disincentivize student housing over more permanent options.

Both Brooks and Clement agree the students and the institutions they attend are massive parts of the community and critical to their function, and the only answer is to build more housing.