New residence hall

Jacquelyn Voghel

Managing Editor

Plans for a new residence hall on north campus have been put on hold as the university discusses logistics with the Town of Bristol.

“The design and the fit and the finishes for the new residence hall are completed, but the project has been delayed indefinitely, and that’s due to permitting and sewer issues,” said Vice President of Student Life John King. “The university will continue to participate in discussions with town officials on those issues.”

The new residence hall would be located to the left of the Bayside 300s and appear “very similar” to its neighboring dormitories in design, King said. While the current internal floor plans differ slightly from those of the current Bayside residence halls, the apartments would have “all the amenities and the feel of a current Bayside unit,” although a smaller amount of units would be present in the building.

This placement will leave the “potential for one or two subsequent buildings several years down the road,” King said.

King continued that the new residence hall plans were created due to a desire to meet housing demand and increase on-campus residency, particularly in regard to reducing the amount of students living in off-campus facilities such as Almeida.

Concerning the effect that the planned facility will have on parking, King commented that the university will “continue to study parking and parking demand.”