In the midst of the RSVP street renovation we are enduring, it can be hard to remember there are other neighborhood issues swirling. One is the student rental housing ordinance that has seen a lot of coverage in the Highland Villager lately. As described back in March, the final reading of this ordinance before City Council will be this week, on Wednesday 6/27. Here is a note from Rachel Westermeyer, a neighbor organizing around this issue:

Russ will do his final reading on the Student Housing Ordinance and it will go to a vote at the Council meeting this Wednesday. There are some letters of support, about 28 to date, but 14 against. We need to push for many more letters of support in the next two days. So, if you want this Ordinance, please, please, please write just a sentence or two saying you support the Ordinance to preserve stability and balance in our community… At the present time, Chris Tolbert is ambivalent about giving this Ordinance his backing. It would also be helpful to write the other 5 Council members as well.

So, please consider emailing Russ Stark and Chris Tolbert with your support of the rental ordinance. Other council emails can be found on their official website.

By the way, for those of you not regularly following these issues, a recent effort to block a five-story apartment building at Grand and Finn failed. This new building, really a de-facto dorm, will have a significant impact on that part of Grand. If you would like to join neighbors who are putting up signs to “Preserve Neighborhood Balance” you can contact Kelly MacGregor who has the signs on the front porch of 2128 Lincoln Avenue for $5 each.