Soon after the university says goodbye to its graduating seniors, it will begin making more room for students.
Although there are no specific start dates yet, Director of Housing and Residence Life Craig Allen said the site work and groundbreaking should take place soon after graduation ceremonies on May 11.
The construction is a part of Chancellor Victor Boschini’s vision to make sure there’s housing available for all students who want to live on campus.
Phase three is the final installment of the new unnamed upper-class residence halls.
The first and second halls have recently been completed and are opening in August. The third hall is expected to open in August 2014.
Like the other halls, phase three will feature 163 beds, four floors and suite style rooms, Allen said.
Harold Leeman, associate director of TCU’s facilities planning department, said the university has spent $37.6 million on buildings one and two.
“We’re going to be coming in under budget on those,” he said.
The university plans to spend an estimated $16.5 million on phase three. The final budget is expected to be set at a meeting on Friday, Leeman said.
Once the Worth Hills residence hall construction is complete, the university plans to begin renovations on Colby Hall, he said. The work, set to begin in May 2014, is expected to take more than a year to complete.
Sophomore accounting major Crockett Jurrius said the university’s plan to renovate Colby Hall is a good thing.
“I know a lot of girls dread living in Colby,” he said.
Construction of the new Greek housing is set to begin in May 2015.
“We would have planned to start [construction on] sorority and fraternity houses sooner, but we need to get Colby done first,” Leeman said.
Leeman said the first set of sorority and fraternity residence halls should open in the fall of 2016 and construction will continue on the remainder of the Greek residence halls in May of 2016 with a finish date of May 2018.
“We’ll end up with a few more than we have now,” Leeman said of the university’s Greek housing.
