Off Campus Houses, Part 2: 432 and Hair House

Photo by Ellie Spaulding

(From top) Adam Savanick, Mike Dezort, Zach Bower, Michael Stauffer, and Matt Ruth goof off at The 432.

To continue the profiling of some of the off-campus houses currently inhabited by EMU students, this week the Weather Vane features The 432 and Hair House.

The 432

Five bright-futured seniors call this two-story, century-old, white house on Elizabeth Street home. Adam Savanick, Michael Stauffer, Matt Ruth, Mike Dezort, and Zach Bowe, have been thoroughly enjoying the house this past year, taking advantage of every possible bonus that the house has to offer.

The five men are the first known EMU students to call 432 East Elizabeth Street home, and to give it the well-known name "The 432." Stauffer and Ruth recounted the numerous names that were considered before finally settling on The 432: Drama House, The Final Countdown, 432Infinity and Beyond, and 432Hot to Handle were just some of the names that the housemates kicked around. "But it pretty much came down to what was easy to say and remember," said Ruth. Thanks guys, we appreciate it.

Located in central Harrisonburg, the house is a short five minute drive from EMU, as well as a quick drive or walk to the downtown area. The house is well-fitted for a group of EMU students. Six bedrooms, two full bathrooms, a spacious kitchen, and a large living room all make for a great entertaining house. An attic and basement are also part of the house, although Stauffer explained "We've never been into the attic. We're pretty positive that there are either dead bodies or treasure." Both front and back porches, as well as the back yard were very appealing aspects for the current renters.

Judith Phillips owns the house, which rents for $1375 a month plus utilities. The house has yet to be spoken for for the next school year, but hopes are high that students will continue The 432 tradition. Ruth summed up the housemates' feelings about the house when he said, "It definitely has the 'college house' feel to it and the character that comes with that." Their lease ends August 1st, so the guys encourage you to contact them with any questions about renting next year.

Hair House

One of the largest and most diverse houses inhabited by EMU students, Hair House easily surpasses all others in community living. Ten juniors and seniors from EMU live at the house, which is just up the hill at 1341 Mt. Clinton Pike. Hair House is currently a co-ed household, with five men and five women living comfortably together. Jonalyn Denlinger, Kaytea Thompson, Amanda Gross, Liza James, Valerie Showalter, Clinton Miller, David Troyer, Julian Wiebe-Johnson, Andi Dube, and Kurt Rosenberger all inhabit the house.

The house is perfectly located for EMU students, about a minute away from main campus on foot. Troyer, when asked why he enjoyed the house, replied, "It's close to campus, and it keeps me more involved socially than I probably would be living elsewhere off campus." The house is actually three apartments that have been opened up into one large house. With six bedrooms, a crawlspace that doubles as a bedroom, 3 kitchens, and four bathrooms the house accommodates the ten very nicely.

Hair House received its name years ago, and has since changed EMU and non-EMU hands numerous times. According to Denlinger, the story is that "originally the name came from its dwellers who were all gentleman with long hair. It got nicknamed that and has stuck ever since." And with ten heads of hair under the roof, one might think tension would be high. "Sometimes we just want to pull out each other's hair (no pun intended). But it is an extremely unique experience to live with nine other people. It challenges you in ways that you never knew you could or ever wanted to be challenged before. Basically you are one big family. You give each other crap, but when it comes down to it, you are there to support each other," said Denlinger about the mass of bodies in the house.

At $1500 a month, not including utilities, the house itself is fairly inexpensive. The inhabitants generally spend between $230 and $300 dollars a month, and pool their money for simplicity.