By Najah Morgan
JAMBAR CONTRIBUTOR
The Flats at Wick apartments are currently up for sale, and Youngstown State University is considering the purchase.
The off-campus student housing is owned by NYO Property Group, which is run by developer Dominic Marchionda.
Marchionda was indicted by a Mahoning County grand jury in August 2018 on corruption charges. His trial is slated for June 2020.
The Flats at Wick complex is listed at $8.5 million, and online the Flats at Wick are advertised as “student living at its finest.”
The YSU Board of Trustees recently authorized investigating the possibility of purchasing the flats.
Ron Cole, YSU’s director of communications, said expanding campus housing would provide opportunities for students who don’t want to commute.
“Over the course of the last three to four years, we have made a lot of progress in expanding the housing here on campus,” Cole said.
He said university officials realize the availability of housing can have a direct impact on enrollment.
The possible purchase of the Flats at Wick “will be looked at thoroughly. Then a report will come back to the board of trustees explaining how to move forward,” Cole said.
YSU has five residence halls located on campus that provide housing for students. They are Cafaro House, Lyden House, Wick House, Kilcawley House and Weller House.
There are also off-campus housing options for YSU students: the University Edge apartments at the corner of Fifth and Rayen avenues, The Enclave at the corner of Wick and Lincoln avenues, Buechner Hall, a residence hall for women located on Bryson Street and more.
Alexis Porterfield, senior exercise science major, lives at the Flats at Wick and said she’s hopeful YSU will purchase them because her rent could be tacked onto her tuition.
“I have to take out a lot of student loans which ends up being for the flats as well. But if it was tacked onto tuition, it would help me because I have to work another job to help cover my rent,” Porterfield said.
Madison Kirshner, freshman business marketing major, said she believes the purchase of the Flats at Wick by the university would be a good investment.
“I currently live at Lyden House, but I am looking into getting an apartment next year. So being able to coincide my tuition with payment for an apartment would be beneficial for me and other students like me,” Kirshner said.
Cole said once the YSU Board of Trustees receive the results of its purchase study, the university will release more information.
