A new campus housing project approved by the Board of Trustees will add residences for juniors and seniors, increasing the diversity of housing available at CC. Upon completion — scheduled for July 2017 — the East Campus Housing Community will feature eight residential buildings housing a total of 154 students in cottages, small houses, and brownstone-type apartments.

“The intent is to reach beyond traditional upper-class housing models in an effort to be innovative and flexible in meeting the needs of CC’s ever-changing student population,” says John Lauer, associate vice president for student life. “This project will be distinctively CC while also being a model of innovation for the student housing industry.” CC is one of three campuses nationwide that has built new housing as part of the Association of College and University Housing Officers-International (ACUHO-I) Twenty-First Century Housing Project.

The residences will be built facing an outdoor common area, helping to promote a sense of neighborhood. The estimated $18 million project, which will blend the traditional with the contemporary, also includes a community center and classroom, an office for a residential life staff member, a laundry room serving the broader East Campus area, and parking. The site, located on the southeast corner of Nevada Avenue and Uintah Street, held three 1920-era houses, which CC allowed the Colorado Springs Fire Department to use for training exercises before they were demolished, and an underused parking lot.

The additional space will help the college meet demand for housing, while not changing the requirement that students live on campus for three years. “Some seniors continue to want on-campus housing options, especially those that provide an off-campus feel,” says Lauer. The project is part of CC’s Campus Master Plan and strategic plan.