Arizona State University’s growing freshman classes has led to University Housing partnering with Roosevelt Point, an apartment complex located at 888 North Fourth Street, to provide additional housing for upperclassmen starting in the 2019-2020 school year.
The fall 2018 semester saw immense growth of newly enrolled students, leading to the relocation of freshmen to off-campus housing, such as downtown Phoenix hotels and apartment complexes in Tempe and Phoenix, both temporarily and for the remainder of the year. Most incoming freshmen usually reside in Taylor Place, the only dormitory on the Downtown campus.
Through a leasing agreement with Roosevelt Point, ASU University Housing is offering university-coordinated residential experiences for all students who opted to live on-campus at no additional cost.
Office Coordinator of Taylor Place Starla Jones recalled Taylor Place’s change in environment since she arrived almost a decade ago.
“I came to Taylor Place in 2010 and it was basically empty—it was like the students could play musical chairs,” Jones said. “The population of Taylor Place is definitely full to capacity during the 2018-2019 school year as this is the biggest freshman class that we have ever had.”
According to ASU Facts, the fall 2018 incoming class was the largest in the university’s history, with 11,584 total Sun Devils on the Downtown campus.
Georgeana Montoya, Associate Vice President of Educational Outreach & Student Services, views Roosevelt Point as an asset for both downtown students and the surrounding neighborhood.
“Students and families choose ASU for the many resources, opportunities and personalized experiences that Sun Devils enjoy,” Montoya said. “We are excited to see the growth and affinity towards the Downtown campus and look forward to many years of progress.”
In addition to the ASU administration’s excitement for this partnership, Matt Burkett, Regional Property Manager of Roosevelt Point, also commented on how this will benefit both students and downtown Phoenix in the long run.
“Students will get the opportunity to live in purpose-built student housing that is within walking distance to campus and do so through the university,” Burkett said. “We are pleased with our partnership with ASU.”
Katelyn O’Keefe, a freshman majoring in criminal justice, was one of the fortunate students to secure a spot in Taylor Place for her first year.
“I really liked it first semester because it gave me a good way to meet new people and all of my friends are on my floor,” O’Keefe said. “Everything is so convenient—the dining hall is downstairs, my classes are close.”
O’Keefe is also part of Barrett, The Honors College; the program requires students to reside in Taylor Place for two full school years. There were 666 Barrett downtown Phoenix students for the fall 2018 semester, according to ASU statistics. Although not all of these students live on-campus, Barrett has two and a half floors reserved for honors students only.
“I’m not too excited to be living in Taylor Place next year because my friends are all going to be out of the dorms,” O’Keefe said. “I would rather have someone else, like a freshman who really needs to be living in the dorms, take my spot instead of me being required by my Barrett contract.”
Ricky Cornish, a sophomore majoring in journalism, expressed his appreciation for the memories he created during his two-year stay in Taylor Place.
“I love Taylor Place. I’m kind of bummed that I have to leave because it’s so close to the Cronkite School,” Cornish said. “It’s right in the heart of the Downtown campus, and I really like not having to cook for myself.”
Although Cornish is thankful that there will be an alternative option extended to upperclassmen through ASU Housing, the transition is not what he initially anticipated.
“I’m a little nervous moving to Roosevelt Point because people have complained about it, but it’s literally my only option at this point,” Cornish said. “I’m just glad ASU finally did something about the housing issues because downtown housing has been a problem for a long time now.”
ASU Downtown Phoenix Undergraduate Student Government President Aly Perkins helped bring the issue to the administration’s attention.
“That has been a really big problem for students throughout the year and that’s one of our biggest jobs—to relay student’s issues so that there can be change,” Perkins said.
Perkins said she agreed with ASU’s resolution to the housing issue, emphasizing how unfortunate it was that new students could not experience living in the tight-knit community of Taylor Place.
“I’m glad that ASU outsourced to a different apartment complex because they addressed a very obvious need within the community,” Perkins said.
Contact the reporters at sbardfel@asu.edu and anardizz@asu.edu.
