Worried about having to spend your junior or senior year of college in a dorm room? Here’s some news that just may relieve those stressful thoughts. It has recently been revealed that Rockhurst will have a new housing option for juniors and seniors for the start of the 2016-17 school year.
General Information A Rockhurst University graduate who is very active in the community came forward with an interest in donating funds for a new living option on campus. This anonymous donor has donated before and his interests are usually around aiding residence facilities. The Campus Master Plan called for additional housing, and the original plan was to build a dormitory of 250 beds south of Arrupe Hall. However, it would be more costly to build a dormitory hall and Rockhurst is interested in providing suite-style living for upperclassmen. Many schools are turning towards the suite-style on-campus housing styles due to the interest in keeping older students on campus. Universities on other campuses are leaning towards building this type of housing versus large dormitories because of the reduced cost of building, problems that come with filling a large building, and limited interest in upperclassman interest. Over half of St. Louis University's housing options are suite or apartment style living options. Currently, the living options here at Rockhurst include: dormitory rooms, townhouses, and on-campus houses. In regards to these types of housing options, Matt Heinrich said, “I always thought one of the pieces missing was suite-style living.” Starting back in late December of 2014 and early January of 2015, Heinrich attended Neighborhood Association meetings in which he presented the proposed plans for the new campus housing. He received a lot of positive feedback and even a few letters of support from the 49/63 neighborhood group. Since then, Barsto Construction has been chosen as the construction company to build the housing which is projected to cost $1.6 million for two units (32 beds total). Design The planned design of the buildings will follow the 1920 style housing to fit in with the existing neighboring houses. With that being said, the major 1920 style details that will be included are:
Floor Plan Main floor: Kitchen, Living Room, Laundry Upstairs: 2 Bedrooms, 1 Bathroom—Suite Style Downstairs: 2 Bedrooms, 1 Bathroom—Suite Style Amenities
Parking A parking lot will be built adjacent to the building solely for the use of the residents. Exactly 32 stalls will be available within the parking lot. Specific parking passes will be administered to those residents for parking in that specific lot just as it is done for the Townhouse Village residents. Student Senate President Rachel Pearson said, "I'm looking forward to the fact that the new housing project has their own parking lot. It will not affect the hectic parking that there is on campus right now." Additional Security Measures Additional security measures for the new housing project are currently being discussed. There has been talk about putting up cameras, having card access on doors, as well as having a well-lit landscape. In addition, the building is being constructed right next to the community center where Rockhurst Security’s office is located which will add to the overall protection of the students. Future Plans After the first 32 beds are built, future plans depend on the demand, but the donor is interested in doing multiple phases. These additional phases result in adding another set of 2 or 3 units, adding up to a total of 96 beds. The additional phases would continue down Forest Avenue. Rockhurst already owns majority of the 5400 block of Forest. Therefore acquiring land will not be a problem. Cost The cost of all the residence halls currently available include: Residence Halls (per semester) Xavier-Loyola: Single-$3,830/Double-$2,550 McGee & Corcoran: Single-$4,325/Double-$2,880 Townhouse Village (per semester) 1 Bedroom/2 Person-$3,910 2 Bedroom/4 Person-$3,785 3 Bedroom/6 Person-$3,785 2 Bedroom/6 Person-$3,225 On-Campus Houses (per semester) $3,445 The cost of this suite-style housing has not been established yet. However, it is estimated to cost in the proximity of the townhouses and on-campus houses. How to Apply The pilot housing will be available to juniors and seniors only. The application process will be the same as any other residence application, and the students will be awarded housing based on the same point system. Who is Paying for New Housing Option?
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Concerns of Security
"For the moment it's mostly just preliminary planning", says Sgt. Diamond in response to questions about the progress of the new campus housing addition that is supposed to be built just south of the main campus on Forest avenue.
Plans for the new building project have been created and the location has been set, but many aspects of the project are still in the works including placement of plumbing, electrical lines and permits from the city. Although this new housing project consists of 8 units housing, 32 students the impact to traffic on campus will be minimal. If however you normally park your vehicle on 54th and Forest Avenue, you will likely need to find a new parking spot while construction is under way and possibly after construction is completed. Although the project seems to be gathering momentum fairly quickly, construction likely won't start until after the first of the year. Neighborhood Input
“Many were very concerned about the project when it was first introduced,” said Alicia Douglas, director of community relations and outreach.
According to Douglas, the community had concerns about a new building because they wanted something that blended into the architecture of the neighborhood. Many neighborhood residents also expressed concerns for parking and the flow of traffic. These concerns and many others were taken into consideration, and a plan was proposed that merged the wants and needs of the community with those of the university. The proposed design incorporates many of the designs found through the neighborhood as well as a parking lot behind the proposed buildings that would accommodate the new residents. Matt Heinrich and his committee have been working diligently with the neighborhood in order to ensure the new housing project’s utmost success. Heinrich met regularly with neighborhood associations, and he also attended two 49/63 meetings. 49/63 has been around for awhile, and it was important for Rockhurst to get their support in order to continue with their new housing plans. Fortunately, Heinrich received letters of support from 49/63 and other neighborhood associations, allowing the committee to move forward in their plans. Overall, the community has overwhelmingly approved of the implementations that Rockhurst has proposed. |
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