The University of Tampa has undergone extensive construction in recent years. Over the past few semesters, the Sykes Chapel was built and the Martinez Athletics Center renovated, and now a new residence hall is under construction. Currently unnamed, Residence Hall 7 will be the newest dorm on campus.
Set up in a suite style similar to Straz, except with no kitchen, the dorm will be offered to upperclassmen based on the number of credits they have, which is the same method that has been used before in housing selections. Residence Hall 7 is already a selection for students to choose for housing next fall and is expected to be completed by then. Stephen Long, president of Residence Hall Association (RHA), toured the building, as he is representing the students during this project.
“The views from the top floors are amazing. Since the hall will be taller than Vaughn, you will see some amazing sights of the skyline and the bay,” Long said. “The rooms are a great size, and the common areas will be just as cozy. The bathrooms are also really cool, and very functional. They are equipped with more outlets so people are able to plug in all of their bathroom accessories, which was an add-on for the girls.”
Long will also have a say in choosing the furniture in the rooms and common areas, as well as the overall look and feel of the building. The top (11th) floor will be completely for students, a room which only student organizations can rent out. “That means outside vendors will not be able to set up blackout times, or knock students from the room as many have seen happen with the ninth floor of Vaughn,” Long said.
Beck, the construction company, is making Residence Hall 7 a sustainable building. The chemicals being used are safe and the materials used are recycled.
Also, the building has green lighting systems and water collection processes. It could potentially be the third Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified building on campus.
But in order for the building to be LEED certified, the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) must honor that award.
Richard Ogorek, the vice president for Administration and Finance, explained some of the elements used to determine this award.
“The most significant elements relate to the efficient heating, ventilating and air conditioning system (HVAC),” Ogorek said. “As the project will be connected to the central chiller system we are starting with a high efficiency system. Condensate [water] from air conditioning will be captured and cycled back into the cooling system.”
Some other “green” features include solar panels on the roof of the tower that will contribute to hot water for showers and laundry, and high efficiency lighting that will incorporate occupancy sensors and LED and induction and other high efficiency fluorescent lamps.
But Residence Hall 7 isn’t the only dorm that is going green. Both Smiley and McKay’s mechanical systems now have high efficiency units.
Ogorek added, “The connection of the central chilled water plant to the other ‘tall halls’ will also be a sustainable step. Occupancy sensors regulate lighting in corridors and classrooms.
Lighting systems have been replaced in academic buildings, gyms and the parking garages.”
With these new features incorporated in Residence Hall 7, students are beginning to discuss if the tower will be on their top choices for room selection in the future.
Sophomore sports management major Dana Fortune said, “I would like to live in the new dorm. I’m excited to see what it will look like inside and I would definitely like to live there with a bunch of my friends.”
“I am going to try to live in the new building next year,” said freshman performing arts major Dan Barron. “I think it would be really nice to live in a brand new building and plus its location is rather central to classes and it’s my ideal choice for next year.”
Sophomore advertising and public relations major T-Age Williams said, “From what I’m hearing, the new dorm is supposedly going to be really cool. I heard it’s going to have a community room that’s going to be all windows and solar panels that provide power.
Plus it’s new and there will be singles. So yeah, I would live there.”
One of the problems that Residence Hall 7 will potentially solve is the overflow of students at the Howard Johnson. At least, that’s what some students are hoping for, but that all depends on expansion of the university.
Sophomore marine science major Tessa Skilton said, “I think it’s awesome that people finally won’t have to live in the Hojo because we pay enough money to go here, we should at least get a dorm.”
“It’s about time this school got a new dorm,” Williams said. “Really, how much longer could we have UT students banging holes in the wall and terrorizing the Hojo?”
Caroline Metell can be reached at cmetell@spartans.ut.edu