University of Virginia Library

Colloquium

Student Tenant Image Gaining Backbone

By PAUL DIPASQUALE

(Mr. DiPasquale is a
fourth-year College
representative to the Student
Council. He is chairman of the
Off Grounds Housing
Organization.–Ed.)

One's first trip to the
University's Off-Grounds
Housing Office can be as
unique an experience as signing
one's honor card. However, for
the Honor Committee each
student pledges his
responsibility to the University
community; for the Housing
Office, each student finds he is
responsible for his neck and his
wallet to be saved from the
community at large.

Our community kow towing
Housing Office is a surprise to
few. What may be a surprise is
the newly formed Off-Grounds
Housing Organization (OGHO)
chaired by David Barnes and
myself organized to coordinate
already existing housing type
committee and to give the
student-tenant image some
backbone and ground on which
to stand.

Some of the primary
functions have been tried
before and not without
success, but without funds, and
without sufficient man power
and the channels to establish
year to year permanency.

The Tenant's Association,
for example, began a program
designed to offer students open
file information on landlords
and property; they also filed
complaints, or compliments,
for either. T.A. was responsible
for the tenant questionnaire
which was compiled by
computer for quick reference.

Two years ago, the
'Landlord-Tenant Law Legal
Aid Handbook' came hot off
the presses from Madison Hall
(and the student aid Lawyer
Referral Office thereof), but the
book had the unfortunate
consequence of remaining hot,
due to legal complications.

This year the scene is better
set: we have our own lawyer,
Ted Hogshire, member of the
local bar, we are student
council associated and thus
have an access to office space
and Stuff to run it with, and
unquestionably we have a
worsened housing situation
facing all students which, in
light of University enrollment
projections, guarantees us not
to improve. This last factor is
hopefully clear enough to
housing ravaged students to
incite motivation against the
Charlottesville non-available
housing juggernaut.

O.G.H.O in addition to
working with the
aforementioned projects, is
opening new channels in the
following areas:

–Tenant complaint service;
a student manned phone to
accept tenant complaints;
arbitration between landlord
and tenant. All complaints will
be filed for cross-reference and
in the instance of any
re-occurrence, the documented
complaint will be forwarded to
Ted Hogshire for "passing of
the word." Consequently it
will save Mr. Hogshire a lot of
time and give OGHO access to
all complaints.

–Implementation of the
form lease and distribution of
the new legal aid handbook; in
this area the organization is
working with the Landlord
Tenant Project headed by
Diane Strictland of the Law
School.

–Organization of the
Tenant Insurance Committee;
in planning stages, this
committee would financially
back up the student tenant,
thus acting as an incentive for
landlords to rent to us
"irresponsible undergraduates."
This is to operate in the same
way the Bad Check Committee
gives local merchants reason to
honor student checks.

–Drawing up and
distribution of renting
information packets to be
primarily used by first year
students in the spring;
basically, practical information
like clauses to watch out for in
leases, or clauses to look for,
etc.

The effectiveness to which
these projected ends can
achieve rests in our laps: if you
take a personal interest in
working for improved student
housing conditions, or if you
are sick of getting reamed each
month for a place to hang your
toothbrush, then, now, housing
can be improved. If now is not
the time, then it will take
several more years of
confusion, disorganization, and
sky-spiraling rents to motivate
a successful student housing
organization.

Our organizational meeting is
tonight, in the conference
room, 3rd floor Newcomb
Hall. I've presented merely
guidelines for action this year;
if you have any suggestions or
plans, the field is wide open.

Clearly, however, our
allocations, our scope and our
success is dependent on the
overall interest shown in the
problem. Thus, if you're
concerned with housing, make
every effort to show up tonight
so we can get started.