Columbia College Chicago, DePaul University and Roosevelt University are proposing to build the nation's largest joint student residence hall on a city-owned parking lot in the South Loop.

University Center of Chicago will house more than 1,700 students and live-in staff on a site near each of the schools bounded by State Street, Congress Parkway, Harrison Street and Holden Court (between State Street and Wabash Avenue), according to a proposal prepared by the three colleges. With an estimated cost of $150 million, the facility is scheduled to open for the fall semester of 2004.

"This project reflects the increasing diversification of the Loop,” said Alicia Berg, Commissioner of the Chicago Department of Planning and Development. It used to be that students came downtown, went to their classes and then left. Not any more. We are creating twin anchors for 24/7 student living, with this new residence on State and Congress and the residence hall of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago on State and Randolph."

Commissioner Berg also praised the commitment of the three universities to the South Loop and other educational institutions. "It shows great confidence on the part of the universities to build this residence hall downtown, and bring young people into the Loop. They are a Good Neighbor – in the old-fashioned sense of the word. They are all strong supporters of culture and education in the city; now they are creating a new presence on State Street."

The schools have formed a not-for-profit corporation called the Educational Advancement Fund (EAF) to develop University Center, an approximately 18-story, 700,000-square-foot building that will face State Street and contain student housing, retail space and a food service facility.

If approved by the city's Department of Planning and Development and City Council after a public hearing, the city will donate the land to the EAF, which will construct, operate and maintain University Center. The facility will be funded by proceeds from a combination of tax-exempt and taxable bonds.

Because of the increasing popularity of the South Loop as a residential and educational community, it has become nearly cost prohibitive for colleges and universities to design, finance, build and operate new student housing facilities alone. The University Center collaboration provides the three schools with critical resources to support steadily increasing enrollments.

University Center, which is being jointly designed by the Chicago architectural firms of Antunovich Associates and VOA, will fit in with the scale and style of other buildings that surround the site. The two-story retail base of the building will be clad in limestone, granite, aluminum and glass. The upper floors will be designed with glass, fiber-reinforced concrete or pre-cast elements and aluminum and glass operable windows.

A variety of housing options will be available for undergraduate, graduate and professional students. Student residences will be located on floors three and above. Each of these floors will be divided into two separate communities. The north side of the building will have units consisting of two, two-student bedrooms connected to a shared bathroom. The area also will contain study lounges and meeting areas. On the south side of the building, there will be a combination of two-bedroom, four-student apartments and four-bedroom, four-student apartments. Each of the apartments will include a dining room, living room, kitchen and two bathrooms. A quiet study room will be located on each floor.

On the first floor of University Center, there will be approximately 35,000 square feet of retail space with frontage on State Street. The facility will expand State Street shopping options for area residents and workers. A 30,000-square-foot food service facility will be located on the second floor. The second floor also will contain student amenities including lounges, offices, multimedia rooms, game rooms, laundry and conference rooms.

In addition to student living quarters, the third floor will provide access to a 20,000-square-foot landscaped roof garden for residents.

Room rates are expected to be competitive with other area campus housing options. University Center rates will include furniture, telephone and high speed Internet access. The facility's location should reduce daily commuting costs for student residents.

The building is expected to provide a number of public and economic benefits. The facility, located southeast of the Harold Washington Library at Congress Parkway and State Street, will transform an underutilized property into a second anchor for the neighborhood, providing another linkage among the area's educational, retail and growing residential areas. The building's retail component will extend the State Street retail corridor south of Congress Parkway and create jobs. Existing shops and businesses in the South Loop also will benefit from extra business generated by the more than 1,700 new residents living in University Center.

The State Street "streetscape" design would be extended to Harrison Street, including sidewalk improvements and tree plantings. University Center also is expected to boost the area's vibrancy, increasing activity at area cultural and educational institutions that include the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Art Institute of Chicago, J. Ira and Nicki Harris Family Hostel, museums, theaters and music venues.

The facility addresses the growing need for student housing in the Loop. A recent survey conducted by the Scion Group LLC, a student housing consultant hired by EAF, showed that a shortage of student housing exists in downtown Chicago. Contributing to the shortage are a record number of university and college enrollments and the growing popularity of urban campuses, continuing increases in local land and housing costs, and the conversion of rental properties to condominiums. Scion Group's survey of 2,650 students found that 83 percent of Columbia students, 72 percent of Roosevelt students and 46 percent of DePaul students interviewed would be interested in living at University Center.

Media Contacts: Robin Florzak, DePaul University: 312/362-8592; Joel Werth, Chicago Dept. of Planning and Development: 312/744-2976; Priscilla Hunter, Columbia College: 312/344-7805; Tom Karow, Roosevelt University: 312/341-3512.