Boarding Houses Affect the City of Kent

Story by Julia Adkins
Video by Aja Phillips

Boarding Houses from Aja Phillips on Vimeo.

 

As the number of students attending Kent State grows, so does the need for student housing. And while the city of Kent has many different options for students, some of them are becoming illegal.

Boarding houses can be found in different places around the city, mainly near campus. But some of these boarding houses are not licensed. And some community members have made complaints to the Kent Zoning Board because they are worried that the city might become taken over by rentals.

What is a boarding house & how can you own one?

According to Title Seven, the Environmental Health and House Maintenance Code, Chapter 1367.01, “no person shall own, operate or be an agent for a multiple use structure without having in his possession a current, unrevoked housing license. Such license shall be issued for a period of one year from the date of issuance and may be renewed for successive periods not to exceed one year.”

Before someone can become licensed to have a legal and fully operating boarding house, he or she must apply to the health commissioner by 30 days before the new licensing period with the proper information and licensing fee. A licensing fee in Kent costs “$100 per multiple use structure, plus an additional five dollars ($5.00) per bedroom within the multiple use structure.”

After submitting an application, the owner or occupant of the house must schedule an inspection with Kent’s health department, also at least 30 days before the new licensing period. The health department must inspect every house before the city of Kent will issue a new or renew an operating license. If during the inspection, a house has any violations against the housing code, the owner or operator of the house will be given time to make corrections before a re-inspection.

 

 

Why it’s a problem in Kent?

As more and more students apply and become accepted at Kent State, there becomes a larger need for more and more places to house these students.

According to Paul Bauer, of the Community Development Department, many of the boarding house complaints are typically close to campus. “Historically, the neighborhoods closest to campus had boarding houses,” said Bauer. “But now, boarding house complaints are coming from across the river.”

Many of the reasons that people have called in to report an alleged boarding house is for excessive noise and too much traffic. After receiving these complaints, Bauer said they open an investigation. Their investigation includes talking to tenants, property owners and neighbors.

However, sometimes the calls in about boarding houses turn out to be invalid.

Heather Phile, development planner for the Community Development Department, said that the majority of complaints happen during the beginning and middle of the school year. “We get more complaints right when people move in,” said Phile. “And when the shifting with semesters. Otherwise, we don’t hear many during other parts of the year.”

According to Phile, that’s when the residents of Kent start to notice if there are more people moving in than who used to live there.

Bauer said that the community of Kent has seen a larger number of boarding houses pop up in the area, which can be frightening to it’s residents. It may distress neighbors if their elderly neighbors disappear and a large group of young college students move in.

However, the code may be ready for some revision. According to Bauer, there has been some pending revision regarding guests. With today’s society, it’s become harder for others, like neighbors and members of a community, to determine who is a guest, who is just a boyfriend or girlfriend staying for a night or two and who is a an extra tenant.

 

How to file a complaint

In order to file a complaint with the city of Kent about a boarding house or possible illegal boarding house, you can either call or stop in at the community development department, 930 Overholt Road. Bauer also said that you can be as detailed or non-detailed as you wish. Those filing complaints can also remain anonymous.