Category: Off campus
55 students waitlisted for Ohio State housing; officials expect to accommodate all
Some Ohio State students looking for on-campus housing have found themselves on a waitlist. Fifty-five students who applied for residence hall housing were on the waitlist as of Friday, Student Life spokesman Dave Isaacs said. He added, though, that this has happened in past years and “we fully expect to be able to accommodate everyone.” “What we do with the waiting list is, as prospective students cancel, then we move people from the waiting list into those rooms,” he said. He added the cancellation rate this year has been consistent with previous years. According to Student Life Housing, Isaacs said, 10,882 students applied for housing for this school year. Of… Read more
Ohio State students urged to lock doors in wake of increased summer crime
Melissa Brooks, a fourth-year in integrated systems engineering, said she will never leave her off-campus home unlocked again following two break-ins that occurred at her residence within the same week. Although she said she doesn’t normally leave the door to her Chittenden Avenue home unlocked, Brooks said she had no other choice after her roommate’s house key and wallet were stolen during an unrelated incident after a night out a few days before the first break-in. “I was leaving the door unlocked for her, for those two or three days, so that way she could get in,” Brooks said. It turns out, the unlocked door allowed for someone else besides… Read more
Rape reported near Ohio State’s campus garners national attention for 911 call
A 911 call made by a woman near Ohio State’s campus is receiving national attention after she reported she was raped and was told to “quit crying” by the dispatcher. Although the dispatcher’s handling of the situation was reported on by national outlets such as the Huffington Post and ABC, she was not punished for her handling of the call. The victim, who said on the call she was staying with friends at an off-campus house, called 911 at about 4 a.m. on June 8 after a man broke in and forced her to perform oral sex at gunpoint. He then stole her money and cell phone. The house is… Read more
Ohio State, Campus Partners purchase carryouts to improve neighborhood
Campus Partners and Ohio State teamed up to buy two carryouts on North Fourth Street in an effort to reduce crime in the neighborhood. OSU gave a $855,000 grant to help with the overall $1.1 million purchase of Kelly’s Carryout at 1521 N. 4th St. and D&J Carryout at 1395 N. 4th St. That money came from revenue the university generates from leasing properties, and did not come from tuition, university spokesman Dan Hedman said in an email. “This effort is directly in line with Campus Partners’ mission to support the revitalization of the surrounding community,” Keith Myers, associate vice president of Physical Planning and Real Estate at OSU, said… Read more
Pelotonia to add additional starting location for increased safety with more riders
Pelotonia, Ohio State’s grassroots fundraising bike ride aiming to alleviate cancer, is slated to have one additional starting location this year in order to maintain rider safety due to an increased number of riders, according to a Pelotonia press release. “With approximately 7,000 riders expected to participate in Pelotonia 14, a second downtown starting location is necessary to maintain rider safety and alleviate route congestion,” Kristopher Anderson, director of Event Operations and Safety at Pelotonia, said in the release. “Rider safety continues to be our top priority, so this new start location will only enhance the rider experience.” This year’s ride is set for Saturday, Aug. 9. Unlike past years,… Read more
Police: Body found behind CVS near Ohio State, homicide not suspected
A body was found behind a CVS Pharmacy near Ohio State’s campus Wednesday afternoon, but a Columbus Division of Police sergeant said no criminal activity is suspected. The body of a white man, about age 30, was found in between dumpsters behind the CVS located at 2160 N. High St., Columbus Police Sgt. Loucious Hollis said. “(It was) not a homicide. We don’t know what the cause of death is, but it’s not criminal,” Hollis said. Hollis did not immediately have information about who found the body and whether someone called 911 to report it.… Read more
Some students seek legal options for off-campus housing issues
Mitch Mundy and his roommates were sitting at their home on Chittenden Avenue when the house went dark. They initially thought a fuse had blown, so one of them went down to the basement to fix the problem. When that didn’t work, they called their landlord, who Mundy said told them to put on rubber gloves and boots to fix the issue, as they might be dealing with electrical wires. They refused to fix it themselves, Mundy said. “That’s extremely unprofessional, putting someone’s life in danger,” Mundy, a second-year in psychology, said. It turns out there really wasn’t any danger, since the wires were dead. Although electricity is included in… Read more
3 robberies reported on, near Ohio State’s campus within 3 hours
Three robberies were reported on or near campus in the late evening Friday and early morning Saturday, prompting University Police to issue a public safety notice Saturday afternoon. Two of the incidents reportedly occurred on Ohio State’s campus, while the other occurred off campus. The first robbery occurred on West 17th Avenue and College Road at 11:05 p.m., when a male student was knocked down by two suspects, causing mild injuries to the head and face. “Personal property” was stolen, according to the University Police public safety notice. One suspect was described as a 16-17-year-old black man standing at about 5 feet, 8 inches with long, braided hair and facial… Read more
1K quality checks set for Ohio State off-campus properties in 2014
The Off-Campus Housing Excellence Program at Ohio State has kicked off its home visits, where a representative from Neighborhood Services and Collaboration and the Columbus Division of Fire visit students’ homes to make sure the properties are up to par. This includes assessing the “safety, security and environmental sustainability of off-campus housing in the university area,” according to the program’s website. The program as a whole consists of three components: home visits, education and eventually, enhanced rental property information, which will be available online. The Off-Campus Housing Excellence Program was established by the Office of Student Life as a response to “landlord requests for increased collaboration with the university, and… Read more
