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Working
toward solutions to the student housing crunch
By
Jacki Bernier, Capital Projects
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Housing that
is close to campus is a key demand of students at UC Berkeley.
And with that in mind, the campus has several plans it is considering
to meet the needs.
The most
immediate proposals are for the Southside area, which just went
through a joint university/city of Berkeley study to guide future
plans in the area. Capital Projects is working with Residential
and Student Services Programs to implement what it is calling
the Underhill Area Projects, which will include the replacement
of the Units 1 and 2 Dining Commons with a new central facility;
the replacement of the Underhill Parking Structure; the replacement
of the athletic field on top of the parking structure; and the
construction of up to 840 new student beds in apartment and
suite-style housing.
The four
housing projects now proposed are:
- College-Durant
Apartments - This first project would provide 113 single bedrooms
in a mix of two-to-six bedroom apartments on the corner of
College and Durant avenues. Each apartment would include one
or two bathrooms, a kitchen and living/dining room. This four-story
housing facility is designed with an interior courtyard, a
recreation room, study lounges, laundry facilities and bicycle
parking. Three apartments and the resident adviser's unit
will be fully accessible for disabled students. Pending final
approvals, the housing is expected to open for fall semester
2002.
- Units
1 and 2 Suites - Upon completion of the proposed new central
dining facility, the campus plans to demolish two seismically
poor dining facilities at Units 1 and 2 and build landscaped
interior courtyards. New housing planned in the Unit 1 and
2 complexes in buildings along Durant Avenue, Channing Way
and Haste Street would provide 520 beds in suite configurations
that will have both single-and double-occupancy bedrooms.
Each suite would have its own living/common area and bathroom(s),
with residents taking meals at the proposed new Dining Commons
across the street, along with the other Unit 1 and 2 residents.
Construction timing depends on the completion of the new central
dining facility and Board of Regents approval. Planning for
Unit 1 will soon be under way. The anticipated completion
date for the Unit 1 suites is August 2003; for Unit 2, August
2005.
- Channing-Bowditch
Apartments - This project, which is projected to add close
to 200 beds, would replace the buildings on Channing Way near
Bowditch with single-bedroom apartments in a style similar
to that of the College-Durant Apartments. Also pending Regent
approval, this housing is anticipated to open in January 2004.
The Berkeley
campus is also continuing in its efforts to provide additional
student family housing.
Step 1 of
the University Village Redevelopment Project should be completed
by January 2001. This project includes replacing 268 units of
1940s housing, and 88 units built in the early 1960s, with 392
two- and three-bedroom units in flat and townhouse configurations.
The units are clustered around courtyards that include laundry
facilities, play areas, and a small community garden. Each unit
has one or two bathrooms and a study alcove with network connections.
Step 2 of
the project would involve replacing or renovating the remaining
412 units dating from the 1960s. To begin Step 2, the campus
recently contracted with a team led by Posard Broek & Associates
to perform a comprehensive facilities condition analysis of
the housing structures, infrastructure and associated systems.
The team will estimate how long these units could function presuming
current maintenance levels, and assess how much it would cost
to keep the housing functioning for up to 30 years with strategic
renovations.
Renewing
the Foundations of Excellence home
Source:
Berkeleyan
Special Issue, Fall 2000
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