Overcrowded ASU dorms have students back in hotel rooms

PHOENIX — With a record breaking numbers of students living in Arizona State University’s student housing, some will be waking up in hotel rooms rather than dorms at the start of this school year.

For a second straight year, the school’s downtown campus has been overbooked and students have been placed temporarily into hotels while the school makes arrangements.

“There are fewer than 30 students who are assigned to nearby hotels,” said ASU Spokeswoman Julie Newberg.

More than 13,500 new and returning students are moving into ASU dorms across the school’s four campuses, with 1,300 of those moving into Taylor Place, the downtown Phoenix resident hall, Newberg said. That has ASU’s housing accommodations spread thin.

The students living in hotels will still have access to the same services that students have in the resident halls though, according to Newberg.

“They are going to be participating in all welcome week activities as well as resident hall activities,” she said. “We will provide staffing support and programming opportunities to the students who are living in temporary assignments.”

Newberg said the school will also be putting professional housing staff in the hotels alongside the students.

The downtown campus is not the only ASU campus dealing with overcrowding as Newberg said some students from the Tempe campus will also be placed in hotels temporarily.

Newberg was unable to provide the number of students who would be relocated from the Tempe campus.

The school expects to have all students out of hotels and into dorms by the start of the school year on Aug. 21.

“Circumstances change, there may be some students who decided not to move into the residential hall if they have an apartment off campus or something like that,” Newberg said.