Do Harrisonburg and JMU Need More Student Housing?


Do Harrisonburg and JMU Need More Student Housing?
By Scott Rogers • June 26, 2010
(The Short Answer: No!) As reported by hburgnews a developer from Glen Allen is moving forward with a developing a community for 1,500 college students. Paul Riner astutely points out (WHSV) that it might be five to ten years before enough students exist at JMU for the community to be fully utilized. Is there really too much student housing already built? In Fall 2007, there were approximately 17,428 students at JMU. In a few months (Fall 2010), there are projected to be 18,484 students at JMU. This three year increase of 1,056 students has been paired with an the construction of 3,473 off campus beds. Where are these 3,473 new campus living options? 422 in a new JMU residence hall 332 at Charleston Townes 96 at Sunchase 816 at North 38 188 at Campus View Condos 274 at 865 East 1,220 at Copper Beech 125 at Urban Exchange Why was this enormous number of student housing properties built over the past three years? A few years ago, Harrisonburg created an incentive (with good intentions) for student housing developers to build now, now, now. Much of the land in the City that was annexed several decades ago was zoned R-3, which allowed (until recently) a property owner to build student housing (in the form of three-story apartment buildings) without asking for permission. Much of this R-3 land was adjacent to single family home neighborhoods, and thus Harrisonburg took this "use by right" out of the R-3 zoning classification. R-3 property owners were left with a three year window of time in which they could build this higher density housing (student housing) without asking for permission -- and thus the construction began! Finally, here are some fun quotes out of the Daily News Record article of July 25, 2007: "... James Madison University recently announced plans to increase enrollment by 4,100 students by 2013." Total growth will probably end up being around 1,900 students. "With the influx, we are going to need housing. We are going to need housing quickly." Well, we have that new housing now -- but it turns out we don't need much of it! Receive Updates by Email Recent Articles: There Are Plenty Of Types Of Houses That Exist That Just Are Not Available To Purchase Home Sales By Price Range In The City Of Harrisonburg Are You Compromising On Aspects Of Your Next Home That You Can Or Cannot Change Later? How Much Slower Are The Winter Months In Our Local Housing Market? Rockingham County and New Home Sales Drive Surge in Area Housing Market Find The Balance Between Optimistic And Realistic Home Pricing Room Size Is Difficult To Understand Solely From Real Estate Photos How Much Would You Value Not Having To Prepare Your Home For Showings? One Out Of Four Homes Is Taking Longer Than A Month To Sell Consider The Cost Of Your Planned Renovations When Planning Your Offer
Have any questions? Contact Scott Rogers at 540-578-0102 or scott@funkhousergroup.com
Based on information from the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Association of REALTORS® or its MLS, for the period Jan 1, 2000 through Nov 21, 2024 (unless otherwise noted).
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