Post about the Neighborhood in a Texas Tech Blog

Came across this blog story posted back in April.  Seems a bit one sided. 

http://texastechtoday.com/news/?p=3065

Tech Terrace: students vs. long-time residents


April 12, 2010 by Rachel Kuykendall · Leave a Comment

Kristina Samuel lived with two friends in Tech Terrace, a neighborhood located across the street from Texas Tech University, during her sophomore year.

Eight months into the living situation, Samuel and her roommates received a notification from the city informing them they were breaking a code ordinance by living with two or more unrelated people.

They had to move out of their house at the end semester.

“The law isn’t fair for students,” Samuel said. “I don’t feel comfortable living with only one other person, but that’s what the law makes you do.”

Samuel is not the only student feeling this way.

Dee Jay Wilde, Texas Tech’s student government external vice president, said that ordinance, along with others, is not student-friendly.

“It’s obviously not a very student-friendly code, as well as a lot of parking restrictions in Tech Terrace aren’t really student-friendly, but all we can do is all we can do,” Wilde said. “SGA doesn’t, Tech doesn’t even, have a lot of jurisdiction within the neighborhood.”

Wilde said SGA tries to cooperate with the Texas Tech Homeowner association’s concerns and requests, but incidents happen.

John Winker, owner of Tech Terrace Real Estate, said an alleged assault by a student on a non-student resident at a party in Tech Terrace in February is causing these changes in the neighborhood.

“I think it made our neighborhood have somewhat of a tarnished image,” Winker said. “People got involved and made it sound like if you’re walking the mean streets of Tech Terrace that you may be cussed at, vomited on, urinated on and hit with a beer bottle, and it’s just not accurate at all.”

Seideman said four years ago that was not accurate, but it is with students today.

“Now, if you walk through a bunch of drunk tech students you might as well be waving through a biker brawl,” Seideman said. “They will spit at you, cuss at you, throw beer bottles at you and call you all sorts of names.”

Winker said the event has not affected the amount of people buying or renting houses in the area. He said students moving into the neighborhood should get to know their neighbors.

“Get to know these people, and it’s less likely things will happen,” Winker said. “Just being friendly, it goes a long way.”

Seideman said she does not feel Texas Tech students respect other residents.

“I feel like we’re being squeezed out of our own neighborhood by imminent domain. We’re being taken over,” Seideman said. “Texas Tech refuses to accept any role in student guidance, in teaching – I could give you stories about the lack of interest in helping us maintain a stable neighborhood.”

Although she wasn’t involved in the alleged assault case, Samuel said she feels personally targeted by the long-time Tech Terrace residents.

It’s Tech Terrace, and it’s right across from campus,” Samuel said. “If they don’t want to be around students, there are plenty of neighborhoods farther away that not as many students live in.”