ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON MACLEANS.CA

A group calling itself “concerned Niagara citizens” is distributing a flyer complaining about a proposed apartment building for students.

Apparently there is at least one individual who is not satisfied that students are being driven out of the neighbourhoods surrounding the University of Ontario Institute of Technology by the city’s new student housing bylaw. (The city says the bylaw is not actually targeting students.)

Now, they must be kept from living near the community. (The apartment building will be located on a main street near the campus. The community borders the campus.)

Do these people realize how great a place they live?

Their biggest problem is an influx of educated young people – there are communities that would pretty much sell their soul to the devil to have this “problem.”

Here’s the other thing I don’t get in a lot of these “town and gown” fights – the areas surrounding universities have high property values. The people who move into these areas are making above average wages, many of them are professionals. These means they went to university – why is it they are surprised to learn that universities have students and that students live near universities.

Common sense folks!