The perimeter of Ohio University's campus is lined with more than a dozen "small houses" in need of renovation, and OU officials have yet to determine what the next step is.
There are 15 small houses — which include locations such as Konneker Alumni Center, Walter International Education Center and 29 Park Place — and most of them are more than 100 years old and have significant deferred maintenance as well as accessibility problems.
“Part of the problem and why they are on master plan, is that they are in different states of disrepair, and most of them are not accessible,” Dean of Students Jenny Hall-Jones said.
The president's previous residence, 29 Park Place, was left vacant after a bat infestation that caused OU President Roderick McDavis and First Lady Deborah to move out. McDavis moved into 31 Coventry Lane.
The oldest of the small houses, Bingham House, is 219 years old, and the newest house, Sing Tao House, was built within the past few decades, Director of University Planning and Space Management Shawna Bolin said during the October Board of Trustees meeting.
“Some of the things we need to consider … are the condition,” Bolin said. “A lot of the houses are not well-suited for office environments.”
Bolin said the buildings' unique character adds value to the campus.
“Our next steps are to establish the work group, review opportunities, review these strategies as a team, talk to the campus community and come back with our recommendations,” Bolin said.
She added there is no finalized cost yet.
More than 100 years ago, many of the small houses were private homes where the faculty lived, Hall-Jones said.
“I don’t believe there is anybody in those houses currently,” Bolin said during the board meeting.
When university officials were working on OU's master plan, they received lots of positive feedback concerning the small houses, Hall-Jones said.
Jill Kolencik, a junior studying accounting and pre-law, thinks the university should fix the houses and make improvements.
“I think it’s a good thing to use it for the Honors College and offices like that,” Kolencik said. “The fact that it can be used for honors programs and programs that kind of need a house like that.”
