What was once a prime residential location for a quick walk to campus has now turned into a legal battleground for upperclassmen. With OU taking over operations and management of Cross, current leases are not being upheld to their full extent, including shorter summer leases, room assignments and changes to the original pet policy.
Cross is currently owned by Provident Oklahoma Education Resources, Inc. and offers single, two-bed and four-bed living accommodations for OU students and faculty. Cross will transfer ownership to OU outright June 15, making room for freshmen with the demolition of Adams Tower.
Summer leases were required to be signed by current Cross residents no later than May 1, with an end date of Aug. 13. The university issued an email to residents who have an ongoing lease with Cross, stating they would need to sign a new 2021-22 lease no later than June 11 with the many agreements.
A screenshot of a Cross resident lease agreement, stating the summer lease begins May 17 and ends Aug. 13.
Residents who signed a contract with Provident before May 27 will be granted the same rent agreement they initially signed for, guarantors will be released from leases, upperclassmen won’t be required to have a meal plan and summer residents could be expected to move out as early as July 1, according to an email from OU Housing on May 28. Residents could also be moved to a different building and unit based on availability and further be expected to follow the OU Housing and Residence Life Community Living Guide.
Despite current leases stating summer residents must move out by Aug. 13, the OU Housing office sent an email saying that students who live in Cross this summer must move out by July 31 if they do not complete a 2021-22 housing contract.
William Montgomery, a second-year student at the OU College of Law, said he has lived at Cross on and off since 2019 for the convenience of travel time. He signed a 2021-22 lease with Cross but is now being told by OU that he must sign a new contract through the university.
“This master housing plan is essentially to kick out all upperclassmen students so they can move freshmen in at a higher rate,” Montgomery said. “So as far as how that makes me feel, you know, it makes me angry.”
Montgomery expressed he has met with multiple lawyers at various firms and has been given the green light of an open-shut case — an easily solved court case — against OU should the university choose not to uphold the Cross housing contract he originally signed.
In a June 9 email, Montgomery wrote OU Housing told him he would not have the same room assignment if he did not sign their 2021-22 housing contract.
“(OU Housing) told me that their legal team told them they could force me out. I told them that my legal team had told me the opposite; that I had a valid contract and OU cannot invalidate it,” Montgomery wrote.
When asking for contact information for OU’s lawyers, Montgomery wrote in the email the OU Housing agent abruptly ended their phone conversation and refused all requests from his attorney.
The summer lease signed by most residents guarantees free summer housing if the resident didn’t utilize the offer last summer. Many students used this addendum to their advantage, but now extended time is being stripped away by the university.
An acknowledgement of free summer housing conditions for residents who signed for the 2020-21 academic year.
Amy Buchanan, OU Director of Marketing and Communications, wrote in a June 7 email the university will offer need-based moving assistance with relocating or storing belongings until residents are available to retrieve their items.
OU nursing junior Jessica Goodin, who said she originally signed a lease with Cross because of the free summer housing, is “thankful” she didn’t sign another lease.
Goodin said her room was completely different from the one she toured before moving in, and most of the amenities were farther from her room than she preferred, so she never considered signing another lease at Cross.
“They advertised the kitchen that they had, a cycling gym — a really nice one — and it was pet friendly, so I was like, ‘This would be nice,’ but then I got there the first week and regretted it immediately,” Goodin said.
Cross housing changes don’t stop at residents needing to sign a new lease with OU. Cross became a pet-friendly residential option in the fall of 2020, but with the university taking over management, this will come to an end. As of this fall, only service animals will be allowed in Cross, and the animal must be registered through the OU Accessibility and Disability Resource Center. The May 28 email from OU Housing said all other animals must be removed from the residence.
Despite the restaurants below Cross buildings A and C being closed in the 2020-21 academic year, Buchanan wrote the restaurants and all OU Housing facilities, aside from Adams, will be fully open and operational during the 2021-22 academic year.
OU community health senior Colleen Bloeser said she felt “betrayed,” as she originally signed a 2021-22 lease to live at Cross again but pulled it once she found out she’d be living with underclassmen. After speaking with OU Housing, she said OU would require her to pay the initial $1,099 per month she signed for but would not be guaranteed the single room the price finances.
Bloeser permanently resides in Iowa, but she said she remains at Cross for the summer for her classes, work and research lab. She said the free addendum in the lease coupled with the convenience of not needing to move her belongings was the selling point for signing to live at Cross this summer.
Montgomery, Goodin and Bloeser said they have not received any messages from Cross or Provident regarding the abrupt lease changes.
Bloeser said she emailed OU Housing requesting a later move-out date, but the university has not responded.
“This is a serious problem for some of my fellow Cross residents who … upon the new move-out date for July 31, will be homeless for a few weeks,” Bloeser said.
Leah Houston, the Assistant Director of Licensing and Leasing at Cross, directed all emails regarding the matter to OU and said she does not have any additional comments.
