Neighbors concerned about Saint Vincent College students renting family homes
UNITY TOWNSHIP, Pa. (KDKA) -- Some people in Westmoreland County are raising concerns about some homes in their neighborhood being rented to college students.
The issue came up during a zoning meeting in Unity Township Tuesday night where several people argued the rentals were beginning to have a negative impact in the community.
"I really don't think that's the right place to have one of these houses," said resident Terry Upholster.
Sitting along Catherine Avenue and another on Sunset Drive, these two homes in the Lawson Heights residential neighborhood have been rented out to students attending St. Vincent College.
"They haven't bothered me any besides all the parking going on there. And they have some nice parties. There's a lot of cars there and people," Upholster said.
Upholster says the biggest issue is parking, especially when the students appear to have friends over.
"They've lined them up on the street here. You're not used to having all these cars here, especially on this street here. It's a busy street," Upholster said.
During a zoning meeting Tuesday, several residents complained, saying this is a family neighborhood, saying both parking and safety for children playing outside are concerns with students rather than families renting the homes.
"They've never bothered me, but like I said in the future who's going to -- the next group that comes in there, they could be a lot worse," Upholster said.
The township tells KDKA-TV the houses have been rented to students in the past, but were never registered with the township -- something that's necessary, according to the township ordinance.
Moving forward, the township solicitor says the owners of the properties have 30 days to complete a survey showing they can meet the ordinance criteria, specifically outlining where off-street parking would be for tenants and that there's enough space for four cars for each tenant living inside.
The next zoning board meeting will be held on April 23 where the board will decide on how to move forward, pending all paperwork being submitted. KDKA-TV reached out to the owners of the homes for comment but have not heard back yet.
