In the latest stage of a debate that has continued for years, Binghamton University students and Binghamton residents came together to discuss proposed legislation aimed at improving relations between students and city residents on the West Side of Binghamton.

The West Side of Binghamton includes streets like Oak, Seminary, Court, Chestnut, Main Street, parts of Riverside and State Street, to name a few.

The student-run West Side Neighborhood Project, the West Side Neighborhood Association, homeowners, landlords and students spoke in front of the Binghamton City Council May 2. This forum was about the proposed articles of legislation that include a rental registration program, clarification of functional family definition, co-tenancy dwelling units and the tree street district which would create an urban village on the West Side.

A rental registration would require all landlords to obtain a rental permit in the residential districts and would “ensure that rental tenants have access to safe housing options and to help hold landlords accountable for their properties,” the legislation states.

Clarifying the definition would go into more detail of what it means to be a family unit living in a house, while co-tenancy would “protect the interests of area residents, property owners, landlords and tenants in the R-2 and R-3 districts.”

Vice President of Academic Affairs-elect Kaitlyn Flatley spoke on behalf of the first legislation on rental registration.

“The rental registration program will be good for students,” Flatley said. “It will mean every three years, every home that is rented out needs to be inspected by the city, which is nice because that makes sure that our smoke detectors are in place, our carbon monoxide detectors are working and the place is basically up to code and the students are safe.”

With this registration, students are given a voice.

“The students have a right to demand an inspection so if you as a tenant feel something is wrong with your place, that it is not up to code or simple things like you think your trash is not being taken care of, that is a reason you can call the city for an inspection,” Flatley said.

Flatley added that landlords would be under the city’s rules and tenants will be protected.

“A lot of students right now are living with what you call ‘slumlords,’ which are landlords that are really not accountable for their properties and are not accountable to their students’ needs once they move in,” she said.

Although much of the legislation is aimed at helping students, there were still members of the community who felt that the students were not a major contribution to the city.

A neighborhood watch leader and homeowner spoke, saying, “My wife and I witnessed a student couple celebrating a late Valentine’s Day in their car in front of our house. Our house and cars have been broken into and we have children.”

He added that he hoped the legislation would “enforce requiring landlords to register themselves and stay clean, and keep a basic appearance. The West Side is no longer appealing.”

The legislation to clarify the definition of a family unit was proposed to answer any doubts of the definition.

This legislation only applies to the R-1 District, which is bounded by Chestnut Street and College Street. Landlords who had students as tenants said that asking for your family status is against the law.

Others felt there was no practicality for the measure.

“It was very much aimed to hurt students but I’m very happy that this co-tenancy permit will become an option in the student-populated districts,” Flatley said about the functional family statute.

Another proposal involved the creation of what would be termed an “urban village.” This would be achieved through overlay zoning, a process by which new criteria are added to specific areas of existing zoning sectors. The result would be that conventional families could be living alongside college students and among businesses, which could make for a more diverse urban environment.

“The vision for the urban village is a more pedestrian-friendly, town-city atmosphere,” Flatley said.

Kymel Yard, a senior majoring in English, felt that these legislative proposals required cooperation among the students, landlords, city council and homeowners to see changes.

“Everyone is going to want to live the college life but there is a way to do it in a respectful and accountable way,” Yard said. “A lot of students have a lot of classless thoughts sometimes — ‘This town is poor anyway they need us.’ No, this town has wealth that can provide as long as you give as much to it as you want it to give back to you. That is what students have to see and realize.”