By Bailey Jacobs, freshmen 

University housing has taken a huge blow from the economy.

Brian Bollinger, director of community and residential development, said the overall situation is “just weird,” especially with the freshmen living.

Green Residence Hall has fewer than 90 applicants thus far.

Green can hold 180 residents. In the past six years, the average number of residents has been 167.

“This time last year, at the beginning of April and one week into housing assignments, there were 137 people that had already applied for Green Hall,” said Bollinger.

“The numbers will continue to change until move in and after,” he added.

With about half the amount of applicants, Bollinger said it’s obvious that the economy has taken its toll and will continue to rear its head as move-in gets closer.

“Who knows where we will end up?” he said. “It will all work out, just like it always does. It’s just a little scarier now with the current economic situation.”

For the beginning of April, the statistics do not look promising on paper.

The numbers are constantly changing within the student contracts; none of the housing arrangements are set in stone.

The most problematic side of the housing assignments comes from the waiting list.

Currently, two plans are being considered for Green Hall for 2010-11.

The first plan is to use Green Hall as more of an apartment style living establishment and open it up to the 53 upperclassmen on the waiting list.

Each upperclassman would be able to live as a single and use the suite as his or her own apartment.

With the same rules as the new freshmen have, there would be no ovens and the same curfew would apply.

All residents must have all visitors of the opposite sex out of their room by midnight Sunday through Thursday and 1 a.m. Friday and Saturday.

The other option is to open up a mixed style of living, incorporating both freshmen and upperclassmen living together in the suites.

At least one freshman didn’t find those ideas appealing.

“There is no way I would live in Green again,” Evan Stucky said. “Neither of those options give you enough freedom that you want after your freshman year.”

Friends has kept the residence hall prices the same to alleviate some of the stress caused by the costs of on-campus living. The only change in pricing is the 4 percent increase in meal plans.

The Village, Flats, Smith Apartments and Glen were full as of March 26.

Bollinger made it clear that nothing is definite until students actually move in.

“People are always changing their minds, and it is just up to us to organize the chaos.”