The Student Housing Foundation (SSH) has shelved plans to build more 400 additional housing units for international students at the Zernike campus, as the development was no longer viable due to inflation in construction costs, RTV Noord reports.
The SSH wrote to the municipal authorities last week, stating the planned project could not go ahead, due to increased construction costs and production shortages.
Rik van Niejenhuis, Groningen Alderman for Housing, said the municipality, working in conjunction with the Hanze University of Applied Sciences and the University of Groningen, had reached an agreement with the SSH to build the extra campus accommodation, but the prices received by the developer were all too high.
The agreement was seen as a temporary measure aimed at increasing the supply of housing for international students for the next ten years or so. The project was also expected to result in a reduction of peak demand for student accommodation which usually precedes the beginning of an academic year.
Van Niejenhuis voiced his disappointment that the SSH is not in a position to go ahead with the development at this time. He said: “There is a risk there will be a major shortage of housing in August. That is why we will work with student organisations, RUG and the Hanze University of Applied Sciences to see what solutions we can offer.”
International students face a major scramble to find accommodation at the start of the college every year, due to a shortage of housing and unaffordable rental prices across the private market.
