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Oakland University students push back against proposed development on school’s East Campus

Students concerned about traffic, sustainability and safety

Shawn Ley, Reporter

Kayla Clarke, Senior Web Producer

Published: November 10, 2022 at 5:28 PM

Tags: Oakland University, Oakland County, Andrew Romano, Randilynn Heichel, Rochester, News, Local, Local News, Development

OAKLAND COUNTY, Mich. – Students at Oakland University are pushing back against a planned development on the school’s East Campus.

The Student Congress said that development could put luxury homes, or even a boutique hotel, on what was once the Meadow Brook Hall estate.

There is a lot of open space on that side of campus. The university wants to see developer’s proposals about how the area can be developed, which could include an upscale hotel, family housing and retail.

Sophomore Randilynn Heichel didn’t like how she learned about the school’s plan to develop the area. She saw it on social media.

The Student Congress does not want the area developed at all. Their concerns are mostly regarding three issues: Traffic, sustainability and safety.

The Student Congress has launched an online petition and is planning on bringing their concerns to the Board of Trustees.

“The University has chosen to solicit proposals for the potential development of the East Corner that are consistent with the mission, vision, values and goals of the University and/or they generate significant revenue for Oakland University to be utilized in support of students, faculty and staff.
“The University chose to engage stakeholder groups early in the process starting last spring. Given that the process is at a mid-point, no decisions have been made and no proposals have been submitted for evaluation by the OU Board of Trustees and feedback by the varied stakeholder groups made up of students, faculty, and staff.
“Once the top proposal(s) have been identified, they will be shared on-line and with an extensive number of various stakeholder groups. These proposals, and stakeholder feedback, will be discussed at two public OU Board of Trustee meetings in 2023 (February/April).
“The focus on the process has been to gather information and feedback so the OU Board of Trustees can make a decision that is in the best interest of the university in spring 2023.
“Thus far, while the information is nowhere near 100% complete, the feedback has been plentiful and appreciated. The website has been updated regularly based upon stakeholder feedback sessions. The University will have additional comments once the proposals have been received and evaluated.”
Oakland University

You can click here to learn more about East Campus developments.

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About the Authors

Shawn Ley headshot

Shawn Ley

Local 4 Defender Shawn Ley is an Emmy award-winning journalist who has been with Local 4 News for more than a decade.

Kayla Clarke headshot

Kayla Clarke

Kayla is a Web Producer for ClickOnDetroit. Before she joined the team in 2018 she worked at WILX in Lansing as a digital producer.

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