The Student Village project, already home to the Fitness and Recreation Center, Agganis Arena and the Student Village residence, is entering another stage of evolution as Boston University prepares for “Student Village 2” – a 960-bed student residences projected for completion by Fall 2009.
“This whole site is something that we have been looking at for student residences and recreation since the mid-1980s,” BU spokesman Colin Riley said. “Building [another] student residence is the next phase, and there will be an additional phase after that.”
The new Student Village will be constructed behind Agganis Arena, adjacent to the existing residence hall at 10 Buick St.
“On this entire site, we have approval to build a total of 2,300 beds,” Housing Director Marc Robillard said. “The Student Village building has 817 beds, and what we are calling Student Village 2 will have 960 beds.”
Student Village 2 will have two residence towers connected on the ground floor, much like the existing residence.
“The thought is that one side of the buildings will be very much like the current Student Village, with an apartment-style set-up,” Dean of Students Kenneth Elmore said. “The other half of the building will be more of a suite-style set-up.”
Robillard said the 26-story apartment tower will have 396 rooms similar to the existing residence, but with only one compartmentalized bathroom. Plans call for a community lounge on the top floor.
The 19-story suite tower will have 544 beds divided into 68 suites, Robillard said. Each suite will have four single rooms, two double rooms, a living room and two bathrooms. There will be no kitchen.
There will also be 20 small studio apartments for Resident Assistants, and the first and second floors will be service floors with a mailroom, study areas, laundry and vending.
“Looking ahead at who is going to live there, my sense is that the apartment-style would be targeted for juniors and seniors and the suite-style will be attractive for students who have lived in West Campus their freshman year and want to stay together,” Robillard said.
Although many new freshmen are still adjusting to campus and may be unaware of the coveted Student Village, they will be the only current BU class that has a chance of living in Student Village 2, scheduled to open their senior year.
“I guess it would be a cool idea to [live there],” College of Arts and Sciences freshman Jorge Tercilla said. “I’ve heard that a lot of people like the Student Village.”
Robillard said the Office of Housing works closely with students to explain the layout of newly constructed residences.
“We try to have a section of the floor done by room selection for [Fall 2009], so students can walk through and get a feel for the building,” he said. “It was very successful in the past – the students love it and we love it, too, because of the feedback.”
CAS senior Sayaka Koseki, who currently lives in Student Village after living in Hotel Commonwealth during her freshman year, said the new housing is important because of the shortage of on-campus beds.
“We need more residence halls–period,” she said. “As we are becoming more noticed nationally, people expect more. The Student Village is one of the places [the administration] is putting effort into, and it reflects the care of the administration for student life.”
BU guarantees on-campus housing for all undergraduate students, but the current housing crunch is the result of beds lost when the Hamilton House closed in the fall of 2005, Elmore said.
“On some levels, we have to replace Hamilton House,” he said. “And of course, we want to try and minimize the numbers of students in the Hyatt or in hotels, and if we can, eliminate that.”
Despite complaints about BU’s lack of housing, Riley said when compared to other schools, BU provides extensive housing.
“We house more students than any other independent university in the country,” Riley said.
Elmore said Student Village 2 will continue to enhance BU’s campus life, in spite of its urban setting.
“Most of our undergraduates live on campus, and [the Student Village project] helps to enhance that a little bit by adding more undergraduates on-campus and being able to keep a real eye on how we make a vibrant campus life,” he said.
With respect to construction noise, Elmore said the administration is mindful of “the cycles of the academic calendar,” while Robillard said “there wouldn’t be noise that would affect anyone.”
“When we started the FitRec and Agganis Arena . . . we met with students living at 10 Buick Street and explained how [the construction] would impact traffic concerns,” Robillard said. “We will probably do that again in the West Campus area so they know what they can expect to see.”
College of Communication sophomore Zeny Huang, whose freshman class was the first to have full access to the Fitness and Recreation Center and Agganis Arena, said the new buildings show that “the administration cares about keeping the quality of the facilities updated.”
“I’m not disappointed that I won’t be here for [Student Village 2],” she said. “I just think it’s great that they want to build more housing, because BU has always had a problem with housing shortages. Maybe my younger brother could use the new building if he comes to BU in the future.”
The final phase of the Student Village project will be to create a third residence hall with 523 beds, though administrators say the project is still far off.