Level 27 removes previously provided transportation due to new management

For many Level 27 residents, they choose the far away location with the easy access to campus through the provided transportation. However, on Aug. 22 residents learned their apartment complex would no longer provide transportation from students’ apartments to Miami University. Instead, Butler County Regional Transit Authority (BCRTA) added a new stop at Level 27. The problem: BCRTA buses only come roughly once every hour.

“The Level 27 bus would stop every 20 minutes,” Savannah Higley, a senior zoology major, said. “I have a 10:05 a.m. class Tuesdays and Thursdays. If I don't get on the bus at 9:10 a.m., I have to drive to campus. I won't get to class on time.”

The busing change is a result of a change in management at Level 27. The previous owners were Blue Vista Capital Management LLC until they sold it in May 2025 to Rise Select.

Many students choose Level 27 for the cheaper apartment rates and the provided transportation to school.

Cordelia Stubblefield, a junior journalism and media and communication double major, signed her lease in November 2024. Lindsay Smith, a senior psychology major, lived at Level 27 for the 2024-25 school year and wanted to live there again for the included amenities.

“[The included bus transportation] was the main reason I signed my lease with them,” Smith said. “Otherwise, I would have moved to a closer complex, because the whole draw of Level 27 is ‘yes, it's a little ways on campus, but you have easy access to it.’”

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Because of the limited time between the announcement and school starting, Smith has chosen to ride his bike to school. On average, this takes between 12-20 minutes, depending on where he is going on campus.

“The roads themselves aren't too terrible,” Smith said. “Sometimes the bike lane has some debris in it, but I usually am able to avoid it. The hardest part is the hill up and down, both ways. Then, having to deal with pedestrians and cars, that's a little scary.”

The management switch has also brought other changes to the apartment complex.

“[I was] supposed to have free parking,” Stubblefield said. “I did have to pay $50 for my parking pass on the day that I moved in.”

Stubblefield and her roommate picked Level 27 as it allows pets, and her roommate has a snake. However, with the management change, pets were no longer allowed. But, they made an exception for her due to the preexisting agreement.

Smith also felt that since the change, it’s harder to get in contact with maintenance.

“[The] fire safety system does not work and it's been [that way] since June,” Smith said. “Sometimes they don't specify [which] buildings or when the water is going to be shut off.”

Overall, Level 27’s change in management has interrupted student’s lives and created inconveniences with bussing and other valuable selling points.

To find more information on bus routes, visit butlercountyrta.com.

mulforsj@miamioh.edu

pfennikp@miamioh.edu