To move into an apartment in Davis in September, expect to sign a lease in January.
Housing in the city of Davis has been notoriously scarce for decades, and as the student population is poised to grow, new developments promise some relief.
新澳门六合彩内幕信息 Davis will have about 5,000 more students by the year 2020 than it did in 2011 to meet Chancellor Linda P.B. Katehi鈥檚 2020 Initiative, as well as additional students added in response to 新澳门六合彩内幕信息 President Janet Napolitano鈥檚 plan to enroll more Californians throughout the 新澳门六合彩内幕信息 system.
To accommodate the rising student population, new residence halls are under construction, more rooms are being converted to triple-occupancy, and the university is master leasing more off-campus apartments for student housing. West Village currently houses 2,000 people and plans to add space for 1,000 more, along with housing for faculty and staff. The 新澳门六合彩内幕信息 has said it also will accelerate student housing projects, adding nearly 14,000 beds throughout the system by 2020. 新澳门六合彩内幕信息 Davis provides housing for about 10,000 students and guarantees availability to first-year and transfer students.
Bob Segar, assistant vice chancellor for Campus Planning and Community Resources, said 新澳门六合彩内幕信息 Davis is studying a range of strategies for creating more campus housing. The 鈥渉igh鈥 scenarios could almost house the entirety of the new student population. The university is also seeking public input on its plans for future growth 鈥 a Long Range Development Plan for 2017-2027 鈥 at .
While more beds are coming to 新澳门六合彩内幕信息 Davis, many students will choose to live off campus. In January, the annual AS新澳门六合彩内幕信息D Housing Day gave students the chance to speak to representatives from dozens of apartment complexes around town.
Some attendees pored over a 79-page list of area apartments, while others conferred with future roommates over prices and amenities.
鈥淓veryone鈥檚 trying to get the maximum amount of space for the least amount of money,鈥 undeclared freshman Samuel Melero said.
Serena Santamaria, unit director for AS新澳门六合彩内幕信息D鈥檚 Housing Advising for Undergraduate Students, led planning for the event. She has lived in the same apartment for the last three years and said finding a place to live in Davis is easy as long as you aren't picky.
"If somebody wants their own room that might be more difficult,鈥 the senior English and psychology double major said. 鈥淕enerally everybody is looking for roommates.鈥
Still, demand far outpaces supply. The vacancy rate in the city of Davis continues to drop; 0.2 percent of units are vacant, down from 0.3 percent last year, according to a study commissioned by 新澳门六合彩内幕信息 Davis Student Housing.
Kerrie Schultz, the on-site manager at Lexington, said in the eight years she鈥檚 worked at the apartment complex she鈥檚 seen AS新澳门六合彩内幕信息D鈥檚 Housing Day move about a month earlier, reflecting how early the overall search begins. And students don鈥檛 always get their first choice.
鈥淚t鈥檚 kind of stressful,鈥 said Devin Pon, a freshman electrical engineering major. 鈥淵ou鈥檙e competing against all the other people looking for housing.鈥
More housing is needed, but new developments can take time. The Cannery, a 547-unit community of single-family homes, townhouses and flats in North Davis, is under construction after being first considered nearly a decade ago. Other proposed complexes, like the 244-unit Sterling 5th Street Apartments, have been met with opposition. Developers originally proposed Trackside as a five-and-a-half story retail and apartment building near the Davis Amtrak station, but after outcry plan to revise their proposal.
A large-scale development known as the Nishi Gateway will face voters in June. The proposed 47-acre development, with 440 apartments, 220 condos, retail, office and R&D space, would sit between the southeastern side of campus next to I-80. It seeks to provide housing for students and empty-nesters and space for companies founded in campus research labs. If it鈥檚 approved, the developers would have to pay for improvements to the Richards Boulevard interchange and a new crossing under the railroad tracks to access campus.
Tim Ruff 鈥83, one of those developers, heads up the Nishi Gateway project, which has seen its fair share of debate. Ruff said getting to this point has taken three years, and it could be another three years before breaking ground.
During a February forum on growth in the city, Davis Mayor Pro Tempore Robb Davis was critical of the way conversations about development happen.
鈥淲hat I see in this community is a lot of zero-sum thinking: 鈥業 want change on my terms or I don鈥檛 want it,鈥欌 he said.
Davis predicted the next city council will work to update the city鈥檚 general plan to lay out more clear expectations for growth, adding that it will be a 鈥渃hallenging process.鈥