Although the uncanny weather that drenched the month of June slowed down its construction, one major change has begun to redefine the landscape of the apartments located behind Kelly and Roosevelt Quads.’ No longer simply known as UGA and the “new graduate apartments behind UGA that won’t be ready for a while,” the collective apartments are now being called the “West Apartments”.’
Head of Campus Residences, Assistant Vice President Dallas Bauman, Ph.D., said the change was decided upon so that students would consider the buildings as one entity and not UGA and the new apartments.’ He wanted students to select their living space based on the type of accommodations and lifestyle they preferred and not simply where graduates and undergraduates traditionally had lived.’
The four buildings under construction will contain a total of 678 beds with each apartment offering six singles, two bathrooms, a large kitchen, and a dining and living area.’ The new apartments, which were designed by Urban Architects, Ltd, will also contain laundry facilities on each floor.’
Currently, the $39.5 million project, which is being funded by 30-year bonds sold by the New York State Dormitory Authority, is in its first phase of construction.’ The land on the construction sight has been cleared and Delta Contractors has been hired to build the footings and foundation.’
Although Bauman is hopeful that two of the buildings will be ready in time for the Fall 2004 semester, with the remaining two opening in the spring of 2005, the project has already encountered several roadblocks.’
The rainy weather in June slowed down the construction of the first phase and a general contractor that will manage the entire project has yet to be selected.’ Bauman said that the bids were due in July, but it was clear that he is more than eager to have the major construction underway.’
Once fully completed, the eight buildings will contain over 1200 beds and come equipped with a fitness center, a commons area, office space and a residential computing center.’
The West Apartments will be open to upperclassmen and graduates.’ A choice of single or double rooms will be available in six person units.
Because Stony Brook received money from a wealthy donor, the Schomburg Apartments will not change their name, but they will be managed as part of the quad or complex referred to as the West Apartments.’ Previously UGA, Schomburg and Chapin, which is located across from theUniversityHospital, were all managed out of the Chapin offices. But from now on the east and west parts of campus will be completely separate entities.’
The construction of the new apartments was spurred on by the growing demand for on-campus housing.’ Bauman said he doesn’t see the demand diminishing, but that there were too many factors to make predictions.
“I don’t think anybody is in any position to predict,” he said.’ “But we don’t hope there is a drop in demand because we are taking on a significant amount of debt over the next 30 years.”
