The More the Merrier - Part 6

The lack of housing for students at UC-Santa Barbara apparently continues into September. We have previously posted about this problem.*

From the Santa Barbara Noozhawk:

UC Santa Barbara students are facing a housing shortage unlike ever before as they struggle to find on- and off-campus housing before the start of the fall term on Sept. 23. With just a few weeks to go until the start of UCSB’s school year, the university has been able to place some students into housing while others are still frantically searching and considering living in their cars or deferring for the quarter.

As of [last] Tuesday, the university had accommodated all new transfer and first- and second-year students who met the deadline for requesting housing, UCSB spokeswoman Andrea Estrada told Noozhawk. Additionally, the university has been negotiating with local hotels to make rooms available for those who cannot find suitable housing elsewhere for the fall quarter, according to a message sent to the campus community by Chancellor Henry Yang...

The hotel rooms would include both single- and double-occupancy rooms, according to Yang. Most of the hotels being looked at would be located along regular MTD bus routes, and the housing team is working to address concerns raised by students related to safety, management and meal plans for those arrangements, Yang said. The cost would exceed the amount that students would pay for similar university-owned housing, but would be covered by funds provided by the university from a combination of campus funds, according to Yang...

Full story at:

https://www.noozhawk.com/amp/uc_santa_barbara_working_to_address_housing_shortage_20210903.

Note: The university is claiming that enrollments are not above pre-pandemic levels but somehow there isn't sufficient housing now compared to then. See https://chancellor.ucsb.edu/memos/2021-08-27-covid-19-update-fall-housing-testing-and-vaccinations. In any case, exactly how the additional enrollments the legislature keeps pushing for UC will be accommodated remains an issue.

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*Our prior post on Santa Barbara is at:

https://uclafacultyassociation.blogspot.com/2021/08/the-more-merrier-part-4.html.