Dorm construction to begin next summer pending Trustee approval

Pending approval at the November meeting of the Board of Trustees, the University will begin construction of a four-story residence hall early next summer. The new dorm, tentatively scheduled to open by September 2004, will stretch from Professor's Row to Talbot Ave. between Richardson House and the Yeager House. The four-story, L-shaped building was designed by Graham Gund Architects, Inc. of Cambridge and will have two separate wings, connected by a three-story glass "bridge" of lounges. The project will necessitate the demolition of several structures, including the historic music building, where Tufts' first president lived.

The 53 doubles of the larger wing are expected to accommodate mostly underclassmen, said Vice President of Operations John Roberto. The smaller wing that will parallel Talbot Ave. will provide single rooms for 44 students, primarily upperclassmen. Every two rooms will share a centrally located private bathroom, and residents will be able to use the several lounges and study areas distributed throughout the building, Roberto said.

Tufts will receive a federal grant to make the new residence hall a uniquely "eco-friendly" space, according to Dean of Students Bruce Reitman. The "green" building is designed to lessen the deleterious effects of construction on the environment by using largely recycled or renewable materials. To minimize electricity expenditure, low energy light fixtures, extensive use of energy-efficient glass, and a system of passive solar heating have been proposed, according to Reitman.

Tufts has not embarked on a housing project of this magnitude since the construction of South Hall more than a decade ago. When South opened in 1991, an increased preference among students for off-campus housing resulted in an abundance of vacancies. But in following years, off-campus living costs skyrocketed, filling the once-empty rooms in South and leading to the current on-campus housing shortage.

Though no signs indicate that the resulting increase of on-campus housing requests will slow, the trustees selected the current 150-bed plan over a proposed 300-bed to avoid the oversupply situation the University faced in 1991.

From the outset, the new dorm was seen not only as a means to alleviate the housing crisis, but also as a vehicle to promote interaction between members of the Tufts community, Reitman said.

As former Dean of Academic Services and Student Affairs Kristine Dillon said in the spring of 2000, "A school the quality of Tufts has the opportunity to expand the learning experience outside of the classroom... building a new dorm is not only a matter of bed spaces."

Several seminar rooms and a large second floor lounge capable of holding the dorm's 150 residents will facilitate special programs, assembly, and discussion, Roberto said.

In hopes of encouraging further intellectual and social interaction between faculty and students, a two-bedroom rooftop apartment has been designed to accommodate a professor and his family. The professor-in-residence will not be the building manager, Reitman said.

Instead, the position will closely resemble that of Princeton and Harvard "housemasters." The concept is borrowed from English institutions, where housemasters serve as dormitory heads and parental figures.

The professor's apartment, complete with a large deck for social gatherings, will serve as a meeting place in which the Tufts faculty can interact with students and colleagues, Reitman said.

The dorm's special features will make it well suited for use as a theme house, Reitman said. But, he added that a theme will not be chosen until after the plans are approved, when a program committee will be formed.

Outside of the building, numerous walkways will connect a large patio with various points on the Tufts campus, including the nearby student center and the College Ave. bus stop, Reitman said. While this bustling thoroughfare will be useful in redirecting pedestrian traffic, the patio will also serve as a location for assemblies and meetings. The addition of this space will help alleviate the "dearth of outdoor locations" on the Tufts campus in which assemblies can be held, Reitman said.

Reitman said the three themes of "climate, coherence, and community" outlined by the Task Force for the Undergraduate Experience, which he co-chairs, are well-represented in the new residence hall. While "one building alone can't accomplish [all of the Task Force's goals] for all the students," Reitman hopes that the new dorm will be the "seed that begins the realization of these goals."