The state of on-campus housing has been in flux in recent years as Stevens has gone through a significant period of transformation. In the span of a few years, students experienced the demolition of Jacobus and Hayden Halls and the rise of new residential towers as part of the University Center Complex (UCC). As the University gears up for another stretch of growth and development and expounds on future plans, many students have wondered what other areas of campus will see upheaval.
The Stute had the opportunity to speak with Vice President for Student Affairs Sara Klein and Vice President for Facilities and Campus Operations Bob Maffia about the future of on-campus housing and how it will be affected by the big changes in store.
The Stute: In the past, how has the University approached large-scale construction projects that impact student housing? For example, how did the school plan the demolition of Hayden and Jacobus Halls in preparation for the construction of the UCC, and how was the temporary housing reduction solved?
Projects that affect student housing are planned well in advance, usually two years or more. As you know, housing selections and assignments must be done with full knowledge of the buildings and rooms available. To prepare for the demolition of Jacobus and Hayden Halls, we first needed to create a temporary Student Center, which was located in the former Alexander House (now named Martha Bayard Stevens Hall). That meant having to plan, design, and renovate that building, which started in early 2018. Once that was done, we relocated the Student Center services, allowing us to start the demolition of Jacobus Hall in January 2019. Before we could demolish Hayden Hall, we had to wait until the students moved out at the end of the Spring semester of that same year. Leases were put in place in several buildings in Hoboken to replace the temporary loss of beds, and the shuttle service was expanded to transport students to and from campus.
S: The Year 1 Report for the 2032 Strategic Plan says that “Programming and schematic design has begun for a multipurpose building to replace Davis Hall,” and outlines the space breakdown of that building. Can you tell us more about that?
Stevens is currently evaluating a number of factors that will influence the decision to replace Davis Hall, including affordability, funding sources, timing, and the exact program for the building. While this analysis is underway, the design and construction team have been working in parallel to plan a multi-purpose building on the Davis site so that when a decision is made, we will be ready to go.
S: Are any details regarding this building, including the listed program spaces, confirmed for a potential replacement?
We are anticipating a mixture of academic, research, and residential spaces, but this work is still underway.
S: Assuming that Davis will one day be replaced due to its age, regardless of the timeframe, how would the University approach that project?
Unlike the UCC project, we will not have to relocate program space to another part of campus, as we did before we could remove Jacobus Hall. We will still have to account for the loss of beds, but we now have the towers which gives us on-campus options we did not have when we built the UCC. If needed, we could lease apartments in Hoboken during the period of construction.
S: The scope of on-campus housing relative to the size of the student body has been highly variable throughout Stevens’s history and recently increased dramatically with the opening of the UCC towers. What is Stevens’ position on the future of on-campus housing and its availability to upperclassmen?
Stevens would love to be able to offer enough housing to all students of any class year who wish to reside on-campus. We are, of course, limited by the physical space on campus and the number of beds available in our existing halls. If opportunities arise for additional student housing options in the future, we will certainly consider and pursue them as we are able.
