Student housing co-op seeks third home

A Lawrence student housing cooperative is looking to expand beyond its current two locations.

“We are in need of a third student co-op because we always have more people applying than we have room for,” said Greg Seibel, project manager for the Kansas University Student Housing Assn.

The group is attempting to acquire the house at 1309 Ohio from the Kansas University Endowment Association, which has owned the house since Nov. 1, 2000.

“We bought it because KU asked us to acquire the property,” said John Scarffe, director of communications for the Endowment Association.

He declined additional comment about the Endowment Association’s interest in the property.

If the cooperative succeeds in the purchase, the plan is to move the house to 1033 Ky.

The cooperative, which is not affiliated with KU, currently owns houses at 1406 Tenn. and 1614 Ky. The cooperative was organized in 1938, went dormant and was revived in the 1970s. The house at 1614 Ky. was the first cooperative building.

“A co-op is appealing because it’s something in between living in dorms and living on your own in an apartment. There are more people around than living on your own but you also have more privacy than in the dorms,” Seibel said.

Thirty-eight people now live in the two co-op houses in Lawrence. Aaron Paden, a resident at 1614 Ky., said co-op living works well for students, particularly those who don’t want to be tied to long-term leases.

The Kansas University Student Housing Assn. is trying to purchase this house at 1309 Ohio for a third student co-op in Lawrence. The house is currently owned by KU Endowment Association. If the student group buys the house, it will be moved to 1033 Ky.

“Co-ops have month-to-month rent, which is very beneficial to students because it is flexible and students need flexibility,” Paden said.

According to Seibel, the Endowment Association plans to demolish the house at 1309 Ohio if the cooperative does not acquire it. Scarffe wouldn’t confirm or deny Seibel’s comments.

“KU Endowment has been very helpful working with us. Our project doesn’t cost them anything and it saves them demolition costs,” Seibel said.

The co-op has a budget of $225,000 to move and renovate the house, which currently contains two apartments.

Seibel said the cooperative had been to the Board of Zoning Appeals and the Historic Resources Commission and was approved by both to relocate the house to 1033 Ky. Co-ops are considered boarding houses, and the cooperative is working with the City Commission to have the third structure designated a boarding house.

“We are trying to work through bureaucratic details that the city requires,” Seibel said.

If the co-op acquires the house, it will be looking for more residents.

“We want people that would fit together well. We try to find people who are different and we try to balance things,” Paden said.