November 5, 2025 - Fall Housing

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Dorm Air conditioning

Off-campus housing

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6 College park tax credit

7 Lakeland Reparations

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UMD to install air conditioning in Ellicott, Hagerstown halls

The University of Maryland is planning to install air conditioning to at least two more dorms in the coming years, interim director of residential facilities John Blackwood told RHA during a town hall Thursday evening.

This university plans to add air conditioning to Ellicott Hall as soon as spring 2027, according to Blackwood. The Maryland Board of Public Works also approved funding for future upgrades to Hagerstown Hall in a Wednesday meeting.

Once installations are finished for Ellicott Hall, upgrades for Hagerstown Hall will begin, Blackwood said.

On Wednesday, the state public works board — which consists of the governor, treasurer and comptroller — approved more than $2.7 million in funding for renovations of Ellicott and Hagerstown halls.

The funding is designated for future improvements to the dorms, which include bathroom infrastructure updates and the addition of air conditioning, according to a statement from this university.

By Johana Gonzalez-Cruz | Staff writer

The board also approved more than $81,000 for site enhancements adjacent to the new Discovery House graduate apartment community, scheduled to open in August 2026.

RHA president Emily Shoemaker told The Diamondback that the association has been involved in these plans to renovate Ellicott Hall since at least 2022.

She said the quality of life of everyone living in Ellicott Hall, including resident assistants and community assistants, will benefit from the addition.

“There’s a lot of freshmen who basically get saddled with Ellicott, and they’re not going to get saddled anymore.” Shoemaker said. “They’re going to get placed, and they’re going to be rather satisfied with it.”

South Hill senators Anjali Gangalam and Sumedha Vankadara told The Diamondback that it is important these renovations are coming to the dorms, as it will benefit students who struggle in dorms without air conditioning.

“It’ll definitely help with easing the concerns of stu-

dents, especially incoming students at UMD regarding living situations,” said Gangalam, a freshman biology major.

Vankadara, a freshman social data science major, said she was concerned about getting a dorm without air conditioning when she first came to the university. The addition of air conditioning will ease students’ comfort and encourage more people to attend this university, she said.

Resident Life director Dennis Passarella-George said the execution of these renovations are going to be nuanced. These developments are often complex, expensive and can take years, he explained.

While the project will hold its challenges, he assured students attending the town hall that these renovations are at high priority.

“I’m hoping that the takeaway for tonight is that air conditioning and upgrading our residence halls are still two of our top facilities’ priorities,” he said.

Tired of dorms? Here are some popular off-campus housing options

Looking for next year’s living situation, but don’t want to live in the dorms? Peruse this list of student-friendly housing options near the University of Maryland campus.

Landmark

Landmark is located at the intersection of Regents Drive, College Avenue and Route 1, and is near many of the bars and restaurants in downtown College Park.

Types of Apartments:

At the Landmark, rent prices are per bed, not per apartment.

• Studio, one bathroom, starting at $1,879

• One bedroom, one bathroom, starting at $2,130

• Two bedrooms, two bathrooms, starting at $1,689

• Four bedrooms, two bathrooms, starting at $1,270

• Four bedrooms, four bathrooms, starting at $1,409 Amenities:

• Social lounge

• Fitness center

• Sauna

• Tanning beds

• Yoga/spin studio

• Media room

• Private study rooms

• Bike storage

• Garage parking

Located above the Trader Joe’s and Crunch Fitness, this building is near multiple restaurants.

Types of Apartments:

Apartments are priced per apartment.

• Studio, one bathroom, starting at $1,905

• One bedroom, one bathroom, starting at $1,935

• Two bedroom, two bathrooms, starting at $2,610

• Three bedroom, two bathroom, starting at $4,528 Amenities:

• Outdoor pool

• Fitness center

By Lillian Glaros | Staff writer

• TV lounge

• Individual and coworking spaces

• Game room with wet bar

• Club room

• Pet spa

• Parking

Union on Knox

Located on Knox Road, this apartment complex is close to many restaurants and bars, such as Shake Shake and The Greene Turtle.

Types of Apartments:

Apartments are priced per bed.

• Studio, one bathroom, starting at $1,910

• One bedroom, one bathroom, starting at $2,150

• Two bedrooms, two bathrooms, starting at $1,600

• Four bedrooms, four bathrooms, starting at $1,345 Amenities:

• Clubhouse with a TV lounge and study rooms

• Yoga studio

• Gym

• Pet spa

• Coffee bar

• Bike storage

• Garage parking

Aspen Heights

Located on Knox Road, this apartment building is near Compass Coffee and The Spot Mini.

Types of Apartments:

Prices are per bed, and depend on the layout selected and beds per room.

• One bedroom, one bathroom, starting at $2,049

• Two bedrooms, two bathrooms, starting at $989

• Three bedrooms, three bathrooms, starting at $1,419

• Four bedrooms, two bathrooms, starting at $1,259

• Four bedrooms, four bathrooms, starting at $1,359

• Five bedrooms, five bathrooms, starting at $1,349

Amenities:

• Pool

• Tanning shelf

• Fitness center

• Study pods

• Group study rooms

• Dog spa

• iMac genius lounge

• Relaxation lounge

Hub

Located on Knox Road, this apartment building is above Compass Coffee.

Types of Apartments:

• Studio, one bathroom, starting at $2,049

• One bedroom, one bathroom, starting at $2,369

• Two bedrooms, one bathroom, starting at $1,525

• Three bedrooms, two bathrooms, starting at $1,450

• Four bedrooms, two bathrooms, starting at $1,214

• Four bedrooms, three bathrooms, starting at $1,250

• Four bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms, starting at $1,445

• Four bedrooms, four bathrooms, starting at 1,320

• Four bedrooms, 4.5 bathrooms, starting at $1,485

• Five bedrooms, four bathrooms, starting at $1,530 Amenities:

• Pool

• Fitness center

• Yoga room

• Spa with sauna

• Coworking lounge space

• Clubroom with TVs

• Private meeting rooms

• Executive business area

• Outdoor study areas

College Park Towers

This building, located between Knox Road and Hartwick Road, features condos often rented out to students. Available floor plans depend on current listings and prices depend on the owner.

This apartment building is located on Hartwick Road and is near restaurants such as Little Blue Menu and SeoulSpice.

Types of Apartments:

Price is per bed, and depends on the type of apartment’s floor plan and if the bedroom is shared or not.

• Studio, one bathroom, starting at $2,209

• One bedroom, one bathroom, starting at $2,599

• Two bedrooms, two bathrooms, starting at $1,099

• Three bedrooms, three bathrooms, starting at $1,445

• Four bedrooms, four bathrooms, starting at $1,400

• Five bedrooms, five bathrooms, starting at $1,255 Amenities:

• Jumbotron

• Fire pit

• Parking garage

• Clubroom

• Coffee bar

• Pet grooming station

• Fitness center

Terrapin Row

These apartment buildings are located next to Guilford Drive, Knox Road and Hartwick Road, and are near eateries such as Dunkin’ and The Spot Mini.

Types of Apartments:

Prices are per bed and depend on the type of floor plan and if the room is shared.

• Studio, one bathroom, starting at $2,079

• One bedroom, one bathroom, currently sold out

• Two bedrooms, two bathrooms, starting at $959

• Three bedrooms, three bathrooms, starting at $1,299

• Four bedrooms, four bathrooms, starting at $1,079 Amenities:

• Pool

• Fitness center with spin room and sauna

• Lounge

• Outdoor kitchen

• Game room

• Golf simulator

• Study rooms

Domain

This apartment building is located on Campus Drive and is home to several restaurants.

Types of Apartments:

Rent is priced per apartment.

• One bedroom, one bathroom, starting at $2,282

• Two bedrooms, one bathroom, starting at $2,952 Amenities:

• Fitness center

• HDTV lounge

• Business center and conference rooms

• Private garage

• Pool

• Pet friendly

University View

Located on Route 1, this apartment complex is close to several eateries.

Types of Apartments:

• Studio, one bathroom, starting at $2,059

• Two bedrooms, two bathrooms, starting at $1,265

• Four bedrooms, two bathrooms, starting at $1,069

• Four bedrooms, four bathrooms, starting at $1,199 Amenities:

• Fitness center

• Yoga room

• Meeting and study spaces

• Clubhouse with game room

• Pool

• Parking garage

The Courtyards

These university-affiliated apartments are located on Boteler Lane and near the Xfinity Center.

Types of Apartments:

• Two bedrooms, two bathrooms, starting at $1,082

• Four bedrooms, two bathrooms, starting at $888

• Four bedrooms, four bathrooms, starting at $974 Amenities:

• Fitness center

• Clubhouse

• Volleyball court

• Study lounges

• Pool

Tempo

Located on Route 1, Tempo is close to Lidl and Taco Bell.

Types of Apartments: Inquire with the leasing company as to pricing. Leases are per bed.

• Studio, one bathroom

• One bedroom, one bathroom

• Two bedrooms, two bathrooms

• Three bedrooms, three bathrooms

• Four bedrooms, four bathrooms

• Five bedrooms, five bathrooms Amenities:

• HD multisport simulator

• Fitness center

• Individual and group study rooms

• Makerspace

• Pet wash

• Yoga studio

• Coffee bar

• Garage parking

The Varsity

Located on Route 1, this apartment complex is located right above Looney’s Pub.

Types of Apartments: Leases are per bed.

• One bedroom, one bathroom, starting at $2,100

• Two bedrooms, two bathrooms, starting at $1,570

• Three bedrooms, three bathrooms, starting at $1,240

• Four bedrooms, three bathrooms, starting at $1,160

• Four bedrooms, four bathrooms, starting at $1,195 Amenities:

• Gym

• Clubhouse with game lounge

• Study lounges

• Garage parking

• Conference/study room

CLARIFICATION: This story has been updated to reflect that Courtyards is university-affiliated housing.

College Park City Council hopes new tax credit incentivizes affordable housing, entertainment

The College Park City Council unanimously passed a revised tax credit program last month after two years of work sessions.

The tax credit program is aimed at encouraging more affordable student housing and other communityfocused developments.

The program allows property owners and developers to receive city property tax breaks if they build or renovate qualifying projects. This includes affordable student, workforce and senior housing, daycare centers, vocational training centers, entertainment venues and projects that include tree planting or green infrastructure.

Projects can receive one of two tax credits: a five-year credit that starts at 75 percent and phases down to 15 percent, or a longer 15-year credit at a flat 60 percent, available only for select large-scale projects approved by the city and county.

Council members expressed their support for the tax credit during a public hearing on Sept. 16.

District 1 council member Alan Hew said the program will help bring beneficial businesses to the city.

“These are things that are needed in our community,” Hew said. “We’re doing it for the reasons to support

By Tyler Quattrin I Staff writer

what is lacking — child care, senior housing, affordable housing.”

Nick DiSpirito, the student liaison to the city council, said the inclusion of affordable student housing is rare in tax credit programs and reflects the student liaisons’ goal of addressing high housing costs for students.

“I hear from students time and time again that the prices in this city to afford monthly rent, even when it’s divided among multiple roommates, are very unaffordable,” DiSpirito said. “This encourages developers who are coming into College Park to make more spaces and units that are actually affordable.”

He added that more housing developments would also help the university address the challenge of accommodating all students.

“We’re having a situation where there’s not enough supply, a lot of demand, and the prices are rising exponentially,” DiSpirito said.

Entertainment facilities also qualify for the tax credit program, according to city documents.

Rehanna Barre, the city’s economic development coordinator, said this could attract businesses like the former MilkBoy ArtHouse, a music venue, restaurant and bar on Route 1 in downtown College Park that closed

in 2020.

“It served as an interesting way of bringing a different entertainment dynamic to the city, rather than just being a restaurant or a retail space,” Barre said.

She added that tax credits for workforce housing and vocational centers could help incentivize more students to stay in College Park after graduation.

As of last month, there were not yet any new businesses set to develop in College Park as a result of the tax credit, Barre said.

Some residents expressed concerns that the tax credits could raise prices or taxes for others in the city, but city officials said the program would not increase any costs for residents.

District 2 council member Susan Whitney said attracting new businesses would bring in additional revenue for the city.

“That would be new revenue to the city that we don’t have at all right now,” Whitney said. “Whatever percentage of that revenue that we forgive in the form of a tax credit still leaves a lot of other taxes on the table to benefit residents.”

College Park City Council reviews reparations plan for Lakeland

By Tyler Quattrin I Staff writer

Decades after urban renewal efforts devastated the Lakeland community in College Park, the city’s Restorative Justice Commission is recommending new ways for local government agencies to make amends.

Lakeland, located just east of the University of Maryland campus, was a thriving Black community founded in the 1890s. But between the 1960s and 1980s, a series of urban renewal efforts demolished the majority of homes in the neighborhood and displaced two-thirds of Lakeland residents.

“We’re trying to get wheels moving as fast as we can,” commission chair Maxine Gross said. “A lot of our members are aging, and that’s a really important piece, so we’re losing history left, right and center.”

Gross and other commission members presented a plan to the College Park City Council on Oct. 7. The commission was created in 2022 to promote reconciliation and restoration for Lakeland and has given annual updates to the council since.

The report is based on the five essential elements for reparations outlined by the United Nations: restitution, compensation, rehabilitation, satisfaction and guarantees of

non-repetition.

Proposals under each element include:

Restitution: Creating a “Lakeland Legacy Member” designation for displaced residents and their descendants, who would be the primary beneficiaries of reparative justice initiatives.

Compensation: Directly paying displaced Lakeland households the equivalent of $1,000 in 1975 dollars, including interest.

Rehabilitation: Establishing and continuing community-based supplemental education programs within the Lakeland community.

Satisfaction: Publicly acknowledging the past harm by installing a memorial at Pierce Avenue and displaying the city’s 2020 resolution that acknowledges its role in systematic racism at City Hall.

Guarantees of non-repetition: Legally protecting historic Lakeland landmarks, including Lakeland High School, First Baptist Church and Embry AME Church.

Other recommendations included improving public transportation in the Lakeland neighborhood, establishing a scholars program with free tuition to Lakeland legacy members and helping displaced families return as home and business owners.

As for funding the recommendations, the commission suggests the city look to tax revenue collected from Lakeland. The city currently collects about $137,000 annually from the area, which is expected to grow to nearly $580,000 by 2027. The increase is primarily because of Rambler College Park, the housing development being constructed in the area along Route 1 where Campus Village Shoppes used to be, according to the report.

At the Oct. 7 meeting, council member Llatetra Brown Esters, who represents Lakeland in District 2, recognized that the work to preserve Lakeland’s history and advocate for justice goes back years.

In 2007, Gross helped form the Lakeland Community Heritage Project, which has since digitized archives, organized community events and published a book on Lakeland history.

“When you talk to people who experienced Lakeland before urban renewal, they speak of a vibrant community, a place with caring people who worked together to meet everyone’s needs, a place where facilities, institutions and services needed for everyday life were right at hand,” Gross said.

District 3 council member John Rigg said he wants action quickly, but that the plan’s scale could make it difficult to prioritize action. He called the recommendations “extremely labor-intensive,” and questioned whether full implementation would require more resources than the city can realistically commit. He suggested identifying “quick wins” as immediate priorities.

College Park Mayor Fazlul Kabir said the next steps are collaboration between the commission and city staff to determine a plan for council action.

“This work cannot stop,” Kabir said. “It needs to go into the finish line.”

Council member Susan Whitney, who also represents Lakeland in District 2, said the commission’s presentation pulls together years of work into a clearer path forward.

Whitney said the years of urban renewal don’t seem that long ago, and seeking restorative justice is still important decades later.

“The impacts of this are still affecting the families that this happened to,” she said. “When you lose generational wealth, that is real and that is now.”