Allow construction of new apartment buildings

Anyone who has either looked for a place to live in the past two years or suffered the indignity of seeing their neighborhood changed by new construction knows that Corvallis is going through some growing pains. Those growing pains are in large part due to the university's growth.

The university needs to build more student housing, there is no doubt about that, but the city of Corvallis and its citizens also need to allow for continued development within the city. And if last week's city council meeting about the proposed Harrison Apartments is any indication, there are quite a few citizens who are firmly against any new development.

But if Corvallis is going to provide affordable housing for both working-class families and students, it needs to start approving projects like Harrison Apartments, which infill areas with denser development. The university has not done enough to house the new influx of students over the last few years. Plus, building new dorms is a lengthy process and one which requires the legislature's approval of construction bonds.

The university attempted to gain approval for a construction bond last year for a new dorm, but out of concern for the state's debt level and bond rating, it was not approved. It's currently in the same process of trying to secure a construction bond, and is hoped to make its way through committee during this incredibly short session this month. But this is entirely in the legislature's hands again.

At the same time, the city needs to allow new construction and new development. The tight housing market has priced working-class families out of being able to live in the city where they work and senior citizens from staying in a city they love. It's also led to a growing number of students facing higher and higher rents each year and having to deal with absentee landlords living in Portland or California who do little to maintain properties because they know students have no other choices.

While we empathize with not wanting to see the city or neighborhoods change, projects like Harrison Apartments need to happen. It's easy to say, "Well, Corvallis needs more affordable housing for families and students, but I don't want a development like this in my backyard." But the city does need more housing, more apartments and more code enforcement to punish those who contribute to the noise, parties and trash.

The city needs to grow to accommodate workers and students, and instead of sprawling out, it's a smart idea to infill a tract like an old unused hospital with apartments. Sure, the construction is going to be noisy and the neighborhood will look different, but the buildings need to go up somewhere unfortunately.

The new proposal for the apartments includes additional parking that will help alleviate some of the parking problems the neighborhood already suffers. But the bigger issue here is that maybe the city needs to look at adjusting its code requirements for parking altogether — two and half spaces is not enough for a five-bedroom townhouse if all the residents living there each own a car.

Another complaint is that the apartment is simply too dense of a development for the surrounding area. But for decades now, the city has planned to concentrate dense development in the neighborhoods surrounding the university, assuming the larger density would encourage students to walk and bicycle to school and work. But maybe that is not what the city wants anymore.

Perhaps citizens do not want the density of their neighborhoods to change and the city's 20-year plan should be looked at again. We don't think it should; placing density closest to the university is the smart thing to do planning-wise. But it might not be what the city wants any longer, and it should be something to reconsider.

The hard part about growing pains is that it hurts a little. It won't be easy for the city or the university, but it is something that needs to happen. The city cannot be ossified, and a growing city needs to allow new development to house everyone who wants to live there, from students to workers, from retirees to families. All these different groups are what make a city great, but if there is no place for them here, they will look elsewhere to settle down. It would be a shame for Corvallis to lose some of those people.

Editorials serve as a means for Barometer editors to offer commentary and opinions on issues both global and local, grand in scale or diminutive. The views expressed here are a reflection of the editorial board's majority.