Miami to use Hawks Landing as additional university housing

With the addition of Hawks Landing as Miami University housing, students will need about 30 minutes to walk the 1.3 miles to central campus, where Upham Hall is located. In contrast, students in MacCracken Hall, a large sophomore dorm, only need about nine minutes to walk the 0.4 miles to Upham Hall.

Each year, Miami’s Campus Services goes through the process of placing all rising first-year and sophomore students into university housing. However, this does not always go as planned, leaving some students without housing assignments until mid-summer.

In order to hit the “sweet spot” of 8,000-8,200 beds available for the 2025-26 school year, Miami had to adjust its typical housing choices, said Brian Woodruff, director of housing and operational services. Miami offered the chance for rising sophomores to live in Hawks Landing, which will offer apartment-style housing at on-campus prices. This will be similar to how Heritage Commons apartments are set up, where students will have the choice of a meal plan and have RAs.

This is not the first time Miami has worked with an off-campus location to add additional housing options for students.

“Over the years, we've [had on-campus options] in The Verge and Chestnut Place,” said Rob Abowitz, the director of residence life. “We have used Hawks Landing several times. We have [also] used the Miami Preserve.”

The Verge and Chestnut Place are south of Chestnut street, close to south campus where Heritage Commons apartments and the rec center are. In comparison, Hawks Landing is close to the post office, north of town, on Brown Road.

The walk from Hawks Landing to the Phi Delta Theta gates is roughly 0.9 miles. Students without their own transportation can use the Butler County Regional Transit Authority, which will have a stop in the Hawks Landing parking lot as well as a stop at nearby Sycamore Street.

“I knew someone that lived in Hawks Landing last year, and so I talked to her about [transportation options], and she said that the buses are pretty user friendly,” said Ellie Miller, a rising sophomore and psychology major living in Hawks Landing.

However, even with the addition of Hawks Landing, not all students were able to get housing immediately.

Media and communication major Caroline Gneuhs and her roommate had issues with the housing portal and were unable to get housing last April. Soon after her room selection time slot, she received an email that her current status was pending and she would hear about housing mid-summer.

At the end of May, sophomore Gneuhs and her roommate received their housing assignment for Tappan Hall.

“It's just really frustrating, honestly,” Gneuhs said. “I want to pick where I want to live, because I didn’t get to my freshman year.”

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This situation isn’t unique. Every year, students run into challenges with the housing process.

“We always have a group that were lowest in the lottery process or who didn't respond to the lottery process and didn't even get on and sign up for second year housing, ” Abowitz said. “They're in a status called ‘Not Yet Assigned.’ Eventually, as the dust settles through the summer, they'll get an assignment. Everyone's going to get an assignment.”

Woodruff said everything would work out.

“For the upcoming year, we're confident that we have the right amount of space,” Woodruff wrote in an email to The Miami Student.

mulforsj@miamioh.edu