At this time of year, flowers are expected — but in the Eco Park area, all that’s sprouting are apartments, and they’re filling before they’re even built.

Several management companies currently are leasing new buildings in the area, including Star Properties and Pittsley Realty.

Between January 1991 and January 2001, 152 residential structures have been built in DeKalb, totalling 1,256 units, or apartments.

Ken Gregory, office manager at Star Properties, 711 Lucinda Ave., said the demand for new developments is equalled by a desire for a higher quality product.

“If you look at what new construction has to offer, it can’t be beat,” he said. “Generally, each apartment will have one bathroom per bedroom and includes a host of modern amenities.

“I really do feel that NIU students have the best housing of any school in this state,” he added. “Comparatively speaking, it’s very modern and very well-maintained.”

Michael Coakley, director of Student Housing and Dining Services, agreed with local landlords that the recent increase in development is related to students’ desire for more privacy and space.

“When it comes to the apartments, I think, just like we have to renovate the residence halls, that what students wanted in the ’60s is not what students want now,” he said. “The apartment stock in this town was pretty old. So developers are coming in and building the style of housing that students want. I don’t think it’s that the demand is higher.”

Coakley said the increase isn’t a result of a larger student population — students simply have higher expectations for their living arrangements since past years.

“I don’t think it’s that there’s this huge influx of people here filling apartments,” he said. “It’s the shifting of the population.”

Capacity changes with residence hall renovation

The $26 million Stevenson Towers’ renovation project, which began in 1996 and ended last semester, decreased the number of total spaces available in the residence halls from 2,000 rooms to only 1,300.

During renovation, Coakley said, Stevenson’s occupancy decreased, but since reopening, the towers have filled.

The capacity was reduced because of a student demand for more single rooms, offering increased space and privacy, Coakley said.

Grant Towers is next in line for renovation, and the architectural plans already have been drawn up, he added.

“When Finance and Facilities feels that we’re at the point that we can go out for another bond issue, Grant will be the next one done,” he said.

Eddie Williams, senior vice president of Finance and Facilities, said campus needs, from road repair to renovation and deferred maintenance, are being considered on a year-to-year basis.

Williams said continued renovation will be based on sufficient need, and attempts will be made to take the pressure off student fees.

Grant’s renovation will eliminate 400 of its 2,000 spaces. It hasn’t been decided whether Lincoln and Douglas halls will undergo capacity changes, Coakley added.

Trends in student living

Gregory said in the 10 years he’s been in DeKalb, as a former student and now a landlord, he doesn’t think the number of years students stay in the residence halls has changed.

Kathy Laing, a rental agent at Laing Management, had a similar opinion.

“I believe, ever since we’ve been in business, that part of the population of students go to apartments after their first or second year of dormitory life.”

Students moving out of the residence halls haven’t created a surplus of rooms in the halls. As renovations decrease capacity, limits have been placed on how many upperclassmen can return to the halls to allow space for incoming freshmen.

Though Laing Management currently is not building new apartments, Laing said the Eco Park area is popular among students.

“I believe more students are going to Eco Park because it’s newer,” she said. “In the past, people were more willing to share rooms. Now the trend is that more people like to have their own bedrooms.”

Coakley agreed.

“I think students come with the idea right now that they’d like to be as independent as possible, as soon as possible, but since they’re required to live on campus, a lot of them live with us one year and then move out,” he said.

Carrie Kuh, a senior textiles, apparel and merchandising major, values the independence of apartment-dwelling.

“You can do your own thing,” she said. “You can actually cook for yourself and have privacy from your roommates.”

Kuh explained why she chose to live farther from campus in a newly-built apartment complex.

“If you’re going to spend around $300 a month, you want to get something new as opposed to something that’s been there for a while,” she said. “The new ones are much cleaner. Everything’s new — the appliances are new, and you don’t have to worry about them breaking down on you.”

Coakley said the residence hall experience can’t be matched by off-campus life.

“I believe the residential experience is key to the overall mission of the institution,” he said. “We still are providing a complete collegiate experience, and I think to get students connected that first year, provides them the chance to get connected to services, to what will become their circle of friends, their network of people and to provide that safety net that, if you live off-campus, you don’t necessarily have.”