The Ames City Council workshop on May 6 centered on the debate over future student housing built on the old Ames middle school properties. 

Parts of the property would have to be rezoned for the developer to build the student housing it hopes.

During the workshop, Breckenridge, the developer and owner, along with the College Creek/Old Middle School Neighborhood Association and Iowa State University got to voice their opinions about the project. While Breckenridge wants 1,000 bedrooms of student housing, the neighborhood association and university are hoping for fewer people and single-family homes.

The Old Middle School properties are made up of three parcels of land with the north one located on Lincoln Way and Wilmoth Avenue. The middle and south parcels are both located on State Avenue.

The neighborhood association has a number of concerns that include the loss of scenic, natural and recreational spaces and animal habitats, especially in the south parcel.

Increased traffic and parking issues are also worries of the surrounding neighbors.

“Neighbors care for each other and we’re concerned about our new neighbors. We’re concerned about the residents that would move into this complex and we have specific concerns about safety. We have concerns about construction,” said association member Sharon Guber.

To accommodate the 1,000 bedrooms, the north and middle parcels must be rezoned. Breckenridge would like the north parcel to be rezoned for high-density housing with mixed-use buildings including commercial and residential space.

The middle parcel is currently zoned as a low residential area but the developer wants it to be subdivided and rezoned to a middle density residential area. But Breckenridge said it only wants the higher density designation so it can build fewer five-bedroom houses instead of more three-bedroom houses.

The neighborhood association wants the number of bedrooms to not exceed 400. The association would also like all three of the parcels to stay as a residential low-density zones with different types of residents.

Warren Madden, senior vice president of Business and Finance, said Iowa State wants more student housing but not in this area. Madden said the area is better suited for single-family homes.

“The university is growing and there clearly is a need for additional student housing that’s occurring in a number of other parts of our community today. We understand Breckenridge is interested in doing student housing. We don’t happen to believe this particular location is the right place for student housing,” Madden said.

Iowa State University has property that is attached to the edge of the south parcel. This land is used for agricultural research and the university is concerned the development might affect its land. To solve the issue of harming university land by the south parcel, Breckinridge has offered a 25-foot buffer between the properties with a six-foot fence.

The one issue all sides could agree on was the bike path through the south parcel. Each organization agreed the path should be moved to make it safer for residents to use.

Breckinridge, which works under the name Aspen Heights, hopes to begin building the complex as soon as it gets construction permits. Charlie Vatterott, executive vice president of Aspen Heights said he hopes that will be in July or August.