If you haven’t already heard, many older houses around Hamline’s campus have been targeted for demolition in the near future to make room for various new buildings and spaces for the university. It began this summer with the destruction of the White House on Hewitt Avenue and will continue with a few more Victorian homes located in various locations around campus, including Minnehaha Avenue, Englewood Avenue and others. This has been a part of Hamline’s strategic plan for years now, which might come as a surprise to some who only heard about it recently. This was not a sudden decision by the university, though people seem to be acting as such, seeing as there has already been much vehement discussion about this decision.

I’ve discussed this issue with various friends and colleagues and heard multiple opinions on the issue. Many people are against tearing down the houses due to their historic significance (many of the houses are from the late 1800s or early 1900s). Some, while sad to see pieces of history go, recognize the need for more space on campus; I happen to be in that camp. I’ve seen some of the houses that are being demolished, and let me tell you, some of them are truly decrepit. Understandably, many people in the community who aren’t directly affiliated with Hamline (who are the loudest opposition to the demolitions) may not be seeing Hamline’s point of view; they simply see that we’re tearing down pieces of history whenever we feel like it. However, as a Hamline student who has been attending this school for a few years and lived on campus, I have seen first-hand the problems that have arisen from not having enough space for students and faculty, particularly living space and office space. The university has consistently had to convert dorm lounges into quads to make room for the incoming freshmen and squeeze three people into a two-person dorm room. Each year since I have been attending Hamline, the freshman population has grown, and we simply don’t have the space for them. I’ve even seen faculty offices that are the size of a closet, and adjunct faculty often have to share an uncomfortably small space with other faculty, if they get an office at all.

It is not fair to the students of this university, incoming or current, to not have enough space for them. It makes for an almost claustrophobic feeling on campus. Yes, we are still a small school regardless of the steadily growing student population. However, as the student body grows, the physical campus must grow with it. Admittedly, I am coming from a very Hamline-focused lens, and I realize that the surrounding community doesn’t have an immediate need for more dorms or what-have-you on campus. They are not immediately involved with the university’s needs and issues, and no one likes change, especially when it is so close to home (literally). But the need for a degree is growing, and the university along with it. If we are able to provide a better experience for students and faculty at Hamline by sacrificing some uninhabited, decrepit houses, I am all for it.