‘I was intrigued to live in a container’: Students’ residential motives and satisfaction in a container housing development Alexis Alamel alexis.alamel@univ-lille.fr Swiss Mobility Conference, Lausanne 14/10/19
Student Housing Supply and Demand • The diversity of student housing supply has become a real asset for universities in order to attract new students (Alamel, 2015) • Student housing providers have targeted high-income students, perceived as ‘consumers’ (Hubbard, 2009; Brooks, 2017) • Student housing shortage remains significant in many countries (e.g. FR, NL, NO, DE) • 23% of all EU students experience accommodation cost overburden (Eurostudent, 2018) • The current agenda related to climate change issues invites to reconsider how housing is produce in order to make dwellings more sustainable (Pickerill, 2016)
Triggers for Moving in the General Housing Market • Extensive literature on residential choices at the individual level (Floor and Van Kempen, 1997) as well as at the household level (Coulter et al. 2012; Rérat et al. 2015). • Triggers for moving are different in HE residential context than the ones listed by Deutschman (1972): e.g. stage in life, place utility, employment opportunities, own vs. rent housing, etc. • “ Decisions to move are rational decisions ” (Mulder, 1996: 2010) • “The temporal context of residential preference can be conceptualized in terms of age or life cycle. Values change over the life course, and these changes are presumably reflected in changes in residential preference.” (Lindberg et al., 1992)
Unexplored Students Decision-Making Processes • Students decision-making processes have not been extensively investigated • Student housing career is accentuated by a short time span • The influence of parents in housing choices can be significant • Holton and Riley’s (2013: 69) call for a re-assessment of the student mobilities debate within human geography: “Future research would do well to pay attention not only to how students make decisions on their choice of residence, but also how this changes through the course of their study”
Research Aim To scrutinise the residential determinants in container’s residents housing choices and well-being conditions
Why Container Housing ? • Faster and cheaper production methods than traditional buildings • Modular features: the container housing can be removed and relocated (example of the Spacebox container housing in Utrecht, the Netherlands) • Off-site production meaning less pollutions (e.g. air, visual, and sound) • Reusing empty steel boxes è no shortage of material • Improved energy efficiency due to better insulation than traditional housing • Innovative architecture
Examples of Container Housing Developments Source: Le Quotidien, 18/06/19 Source: EBA51, 2015 Source: Telegraph, 2012 Source: A.Alamel, 2009
The Case Study of the A’Docks Development, Le Havre • First container housing development in France, delivered in September 2010 • The municipality of Le Havre lent the former brownfield • Total cost of the project: ca 5 M €. The CROUS is the owner (in partnership with the rectorate and the university of Le Havre) • 100 studio apartments available (out of about 900 student rooms in Le Havre provided by the CROUS) of 25 m². Average monthly cost is 372€ (all-inclusive) • The first media reports were mostly negative: è « Le Havre puts its students in boxes » (Le Monde, 28/01/11) è « Student housing: containers are getting flooded » (Capital.fr, 08/12/12) è « Students in boxes are rebeling » (Le Canard Enchainé, 13/04/11)
Source: A.Alamel, 2019
The CROUS system The CROUS (Centre régional des œuvres universitaires et scolaires) is a public institution aiming to improve students’ life conditions and in charge of the reception of international students. The CROUS centralises, notably, student loans and scholarships and manages and supplies student accommodation for subsidised students. From January, students can apply for a scholarship for the autumn semester. If students meet the criteria (lower income, degree obtaining, social status, etc.), they can apply for an accommodation (i.e. halls of residence) by selecting their « wishes ». By June, they provide with housing suggestions. Then, the student can accept or decline the housing suggestion. If accepted, the student’s specific room/apartment is imposed by the CROUS, the student has no real power of selecting the specific dwelling.
Methodology Questionnaires • Conducted in February and March 2019 • Composed of 12 questions • 43 students surveyed ( 54% of population). Door to door technique. Interviews • 19 students (10 males, 9 females) = 24% of population • Interviews’ lengths between 15 and 40 minutes • Data analysed using NVivo
Housing Satisfaction General residential satisfaction General atmosphere in residence Social relationships with neighbours Access to public transportation Safety within the housing Cleanliness and maintainance of amenities Comfort in housing Quality of housing 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 Very Low Low Average High Very High
Residential Motives
Taking part of this residential “adventure” « I was aware of other halls of residence but I wanted this one. I was intrigued to live in a container. I wanted to know what it was like to live here. I was curious. I liked the area too but I was mostly curious. » (Male, Student 4) «How many times in your life do you get the opportunity to live in a container? I wanted to be part of this adventure. That makes me a little prestigious. » (Female, Student 3) « At first, when I learnt that I was going to study in Le Havre, I was pretty curious to come live inside a container. In the end, I am rather satisfied » (Male, Student 3) « I saw a documentary about how it (the housing complex) was built up. Then, I heard that the neighbourhood was calm so I decided to go for it. » (Male, Student 9) « I found the residence interesting, The structure is what attracted me the most. I wanted to experiment living in a container housing. The location is not bad either and the neighbourhood is alright. » (Female, Student 1) « I found this accommodation atypical. I was like « Why not giving it a try? » » (Female, Student 8)
Housing perception by family and friends « It’s a great conversation topic, The first thing I say when I mentioned that I live in Le Havre is « I live in a container housing ». Right away, either people have heard of the project before or they don’t really understand and say « in a container? Aren’t you cold? ». It’s really something that calls to mind. After a while, people understand that it’s an apartment like any other. » (Male, Student 1) « When I told my family that I’ll be living in a container, they smiled and were not bothered by it. My friends, they like to joke about it. To live in a container, that’s not usual. They found it cool. Sometimes, they come have a look. They feel reassured. » (Male, Student 3) « My mom was very happy and she saw it. The fact that it was a container, she was happy because it’s a change as it’s not a traditional building, so why not try? When she visited it, she was happy. » (Male, Student 8) « I know that one of my friends was not surprised, she really likes the place. I chose the housing with my parents. They really liked it too, the structure in particular. One of my friends said « hey, are you living in a box? ». Except for that, when I talk to people, they are rather surprised about the comfort. They enjoy it. I think when one says « you’re going to live in a container, you’re going to live in a metal box » that sounds a little precarious but it’s not at all. This suits me well. (Female, Student 7)
Housing Location
Various perceptions of the housing location « I have heard rumours that it was a dangerous neighbourhood. I never had a problem here. I think it’s a good area. » (Female, Student 2) « We are next to the trucks’ road. Sometimes, they drive by and everything shakes. Well… we are next to petrochemicals industries. Sometimes, you can smell the fumes in the morning. That’s not pleasant. Also, the neighbourhood is not very lively. When I walk in the city centre, I feel better than here. With the industries, it looks sad and people also look side. » (Female, Student 5) « As a woman, I avoid to come back home alone. Now, I am trying to come back earlier. Sometimes, people stop by me with their car. When I am alone, I don’t feel comfortable. Some nights, I don’t go out because of that. That sucks. » (Female, Student 6) « It’s a little bit in the outskirt. Yet, I like it. I guess for other students it could be complicated. When you want to go to a student party, it’s generally 20-25 minutes walk to the city centre. Maybe with public transports it’s faster but it’s a hassle to get the right time for the bus although the bus stop is just right there. » (Male, Student 1)
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