MIXED HOUSING. Two of the homes in Historic Randall Park Neighborhood, one of them historic and the other ... somewhat less historic (a student rental).

Volume One recently published a special section on Rental Living, which broke down the Chippewa Valley’s most popular rental neighborhoods – from the kinds of units commonly found there to the nearby amenities. With every area, we also included its nickname, or how it’s often referred to in everyday conversation by the local renting culture (e.g. Out by the Mall, Behind Shopko, etc.). When we got to Randall Park – the area just north of Water Street – we used the nick-name “Student Ghetto.” We knew, despite it being a common phrase, it was likely we’d hear from members of the neighborhood. And sure enough, we did.

The e-mails, physical letters, and phone calls that followed forced us to reflect on how this nickname began, and became a part of the local lexicon – and of even more interest, what it means.

Is it an offensive label for the Historic Randall Park, one of Eau Claire’s most prized neighborhoods? Is it a term of endearment? Or is it a case of people calling it like they see it?

Long-time Randall Park resident and business owner Sarah Curtis explained that the nickname likely came from a time when Eau Claire was overrun with large single-family homes. “The fashion of the time was to have everything brand new; it was a status symbol,” she said. “Once the houses were changed into multi-unit apartments, they became ideal for student housing. Sometimes it was done well; sometimes, not so well. The ‘not-so-wells’ earned the area its tongue-in-cheek title.”

But through the efforts of the neighborhood’s residents and landlords, the area is far more restored and polished than it once was, she added, and the continued use of the nickname is a “slap in the face” to those that have tried hard to improve the neighborhood.

As a former student herself, neighborhood association president Sharyn Moss said she understands the student perspective that there’s a lot of rundown homes – that’s often where they choose to live, after all.  It was the presence of these homes (and the students) that made Sharyn fear moving back into the neighborhood. But doing so made her see a different side of the neighborhood – the fantastic single-family homes and historic gems – and embrace the unique mixture.

Former neighborhood association president Bob Schneider agreed. “Ghetto has an inflammatory connotation – ‘conferring inferior status or limited opportunity,’ according to Webster,” he said. “We basically love our student population; sure, they do cause problems for some residents, but on the whole they add zest and vitality to the area.”

Though perhaps now a misnomer, the nickname has stuck among the neighborhood’s youthful population.

When I asked UWEC student Briana Krantz where she lives, she responded “Chippewa Street,” and then “The Student Ghetto.” “You mean Randall Park?” I asked. This was foreign to her.

“I honestly don’t know many people who’d know it as Randall Park. Student Ghetto people would know,” she said.

Krantz said the name obviously carries a negative connotation, but “students have put a positive spin on it.” Though it’s a negative name, students think of it as anything but, she clarified, noting the proximity to Water Street and campus. “There’s definitely a degree of pride,” she added.

Earlier this summer, Volume One even received a few requests to add “Student Ghetto” to our series of neighborhood T-shirts (which include East Hill, Third Ward, North Side, etc.). That must mean some students think of it as an endearing nickname. Why else would they be proud to tell the world that’s the place they call home?

“It’s a different kind of ghetto. I’ve never heard gunshots or felt unsafe or anything,” Krantz said. “Other than some crappy student housing, there’s nothing wrong with it.”

It’s hard to have one succinct answer to what it means, as it could very well vary from one individual to the next. But from this writer’s standpoint – one who has lived in Randall Park as a student and is proud to say so – the term “Student Ghetto” may have been born from something negative, but it was also born of a different time. Now it is common vernacular, not as an inflammatory slur, but as unique local phrasing that identifies a sense of place.

So, as weird as it may be to say, it wouldn’t be unusual for a UWEC student to describe their neighborhood as having homes and churches with jaw-dropping historic architecture, or mention the inviting nook that is the West Grand business corridor, or how often they frequent Owen Park, and then polish the conversation off by proudly admitting, “I live in The Student Ghetto.”