Complex Rises

New Residences will house more than 300 students

Work is well under way at the site of the 95,000-square-foot, four-building, 311-bed student residence complex on Sullivan Lane.

Mainly for upperclass students, two of the buildings, with 80+ beds each, will feature four-person suites with semiprivate bathrooms and kitchenettes. Each suite will have its own living area, and there will be a common living/meeting room.

Adding to the roster of residences dedicated to first-year students, a building with about 90 beds will have double rooms with a common bathroom. Two groups of students on each floor will each have their own shared living space. The lower level will include a faculty apartment and a common room opening onto a terrace overlooking the Quad. The fourth building, for special-interest living groups, will have about 50 beds.

The buildings will be named in recognition of generous financial commitments to Lafayette by James Fisher ’77, Harold Kamine ’78, and George Rubin ’64. Peter Simon ’75 has also provided major support.

The complex, totaling $29 million, will also include a 336-vehicle parking deck, due for completion next spring. The residences are expected to be ready for occupancy in fall 2005. Because of the project, areas that formerly accommodated parking for about 200 student vehicles are no longer available for that purpose. To offset this, Lafayette has leased parking space in Forks Plaza shopping center on Sullivan Trail in Forks Township. A new shuttle-bus system includes frequent daily stops at that location.