Embedded Files
Tracing the Issues' Legacy
Copy of TheAppalachian_V28_No1_Sept20_1962.pdfNewspaper article from 1962, discussing two Appalachian State University students who camped out in a parking lot for a semester. Courtesy of ASU Special Collections
The shortage of housing in Boone is not new. In fact, the problem can be traced back to as early as Fall 1962. As most Appalachian State University students geared up for the new school year, two young men named James Boyte and Jim Bridges decided to buy a tent from Sears and rent a parking lot to live in for the year. The two men said that they were late getting to Boone for the school year, and that after spending a day hunting down leads, they had two options: drop out or come up with a more industrious solution. For current App students, this might likely sound like a familiar story.
Although it is apparent housing concerns in Boone can be dated back to 1962, these problems truly come into perspective when it is understood that the school was still a local teaching college at the time. The school would not expand to include other programs and become Appalachian State University until 1967. In 1963, the school population hit 2,500 and doubled over the next ten years. In comparison the Fall 2023 semester welcomed 21,253 incoming students. Over this time, while the school continues to grow, the county's housing struggles to hold the population.
How Bad is Boone?
Photo of busy Downtown Boone. Courtesy of Explore Boone.
As the University once again achieves historic enrollment, the community around the school has been clear on what problems this brings to Boone. According to a study by the High Country Association of Realtors, more than 85% of those that are employed in Boone live elsewhere due to cost. Despite the University's effort to build off-campus housing, this means little to those who cannot afford it or do not qualify. The other issue with these developments is that their exclusivity creates a competition vacuum. In an interview with the radio station WFDD, Matt Dull, the associate vice chancellor for finance and operations in the Division of Student Affairs of App State, referred to the market scarcity, "So that means that we've had pretty high rental rate increases in the past four to five years... Because there's no competition out there. There's no vacancies.” The absence of infrastructure and rise of short-term rentals has squeezed Boone and its surrounding towns to their edge.
This situation has left residents so desperate they become willing to accept unthinkable conditions. While most of these residents do not resort to living in a parking lot, they are forced to deal with equally appalling circumstances. A 2022 article from The Appalachian details the horror stories of multiple tenants including one of a family with a newborn who had to consider investing in camping gear when their apartment flooded with sewage and they nearly had nowhere to live. Ultimately, the family bought a house in Ashe County, a thirty-minute commute, and had to move in before they officially closed on it. This story is one of many from Boone residents who have experienced near or completely uninhabitable housing.
Pushing the Limit
Two newspaper clippings, one from 1964 and the other from 2023, both announcing the new record breaking number of students at Appalachian State University. Courtesy of the Watauga Democrat.
The situation the young men faced in 1962 is still a reality for anyone that moves to Boone, whether they are a student, teaching professional, or average resident. Most of those who need housing in Boone are forced to either live down the mountain and commute or spend past their extent to live locally. When the University's past as a local teaching college is compared against its current presence as a nationally recognized university, it is clear the mountain town is being pushed to its limits.
For more information about Appalachian State University's impact on Boone overpopulation, check out "Why does App State keep admitting more students?"
Bibliography
Garber, Paul. “Appalachian State Begins next Phase of Housing Plan.” 88.5 WFDD, October 17, 2023. https://www.wfdd.org/story/appalachian-state-begins-next-phase-housing- plan#:~:text=There%20are%20almost%2018%2C000%20full,and%20not%20just%20for%20students.
Penely, Larry. “Students Brave Boone Weather During Coming Academic Year.” The Appalachian. September 20, 1962. https://omeka.library.appstate.edu/items/show/32359#?c=&m=&s=&cv=.
Pettey, Megan. “‘We Would Have Been Homeless’: Residents Reflect on Boone’s Housing.” The Appalachian. April 19, 2022. https://theappalachianonline.com/we-would-have-been-homeless-residents-reflect-on-boones-housing/.
William Becker and Will Hofmann. “Rental Rush Creates High Country Housing Troubles.” The Appalachian. March 6, 2023. https://theappalachianonline.com/rental-rush-creates-high-country-housing-troubles/.
Stump, Jessica. “21, 253 Mountaineers Enroll at App State for Fall 2023 – Largest Enrollment in School History.” Appalachian Today. September 8, 2023. https://today.appstate.edu/2023/09/08/enrollment.
Stump, Jessica. “App State Announces 21,253 Enrollment, Largest in School History.” Watauga Democrat, September 19, 2023. https://www.wataugademocrat.com/news/asu_news/app-state- announces-21-253-enrollment-largest-in-school-history/article_d3cc636e-518d-11ee-b9ae- 9f2c984bb38f.html.
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