Two new residence halls are being built in Worth Hills in order to meet the growing demand of students wanting to live on campus.

The residence halls are part of the first phase of TCU’s Vision in Action, said Craig Allen, director of Housing & Residence Life. Vision in Action began in 2006 with renovations and the construction of the Campus Commons. The ultimate goal is to have two-thirds of the student body living on campus.

“We know there is much more demand than we are currently meeting and these halls are part of the multi-phase, multi-year project to meet those stated goals,” Allen said.

The new residence halls will house 399 students. Allen said the halls are being designed with upperclassmen in mind, but freshmen may also live there in the future.

Harold Leeman, associate director of major projects and facilities planning department for the Physical Plant, said the cost of these two residence halls is about $38 million.

Allen said the construction is moving along on schedule. The foundation has been laid, but the buildings won’t start to look like actual residence halls for a few more months. The projected completion date is in the summer of 2013 with halls opening up for students next fall. 

Plans are also being made to build a third residence hall in Worth Hills shortly after the first two are completed. Allen said the master plan for Worth Hills includes new sorority and fraternity houses, a dining hall, a multi-purpose building, a parking garage and two more residence halls.

There is some concern about how construction will impact students living and parking in Worth Hills. 

“We know we’re impacting students; how they walk, where they get to and from, so we appreciate people’s patience and understanding,” Allen said.

Allen said that this is an exciting project and he thinks students will love what they see when it is all finished.