UH Manoa moving ahead on new student housing development

University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
Contact:
Jim Manke, (808) 956-6099
UH Manoa Chancellor's Office
Posted: Dec 6, 2005

The University of Hawaiʻi at Manoa has initiated a public/private developer partnership process for the design and construction of a new student residence hall at the Manoa campus.

Interim UH Manoa Chancellor Denise Konan and Interim President David McClain signed off on an agreement last week for the feasibility phase of the project with American Campus Communities (ACC) — the private developer selected in July by the UH Board of Regents.

During this project feasibility period, ACC will develop conceptual design plans, project development and operating budgets, a proposed contract price and proposed construction schedule.

If this first step results in a housing project that UH determines is marketable, financially feasible and sustainable, both parties would move into a second phase that includes design, development and construction.

Chancellor Konan and Interim Vice Chancellor for Students Wayne Iwaoka visited ACC-developed and managed student housing at the UC Irvine Campus in late November. They toured the residence hall complex, spoke with individuals involved in the construction of a second ACC-developed student housing complex, and met with UC Irvine student housing administrators.

"ACC is a top-drawer developer with broad experience in this field," said Chancellor Konan. "We were really impressed with the totally student-focused facilities that they have in place on the Irvine campus.

"The Irvine complex includes much more than just dorm rooms," Konan added. "They have integrated amenities such as meeting and study rooms, entertainment centers and even small commercial shops into residential centers that are true student communities.

"It‘s exactly the kind of development we need at Manoa, and we‘re eager to see what they will come up with in their planning for our campus."

"We heard that students at Irvine stood in line for days just for a chance to sign up for a space in the new residence hall that opens next fall," Iwaoka said. "They know a good deal when they see one. Students appeared to be very excited about the new facility."

ACC is a seventy-year-old firm, based in Austin, Texas, that has developed campus housing for more than 22,000 university students. The company currently manages 43 student housing communities with more than 26,000 bed spaces. Its client campuses include schools in the University of California System, the State University of New York System, and the University of Colorado and Texas A&M University systems.

The first target in the university‘s efforts to address student housing needs is the development of approximately 800 beds on the site where Frear Hall now sits. It is expected that ACC will complete the initial feasibility phase of the project early next year, with the first new student residence hall at Manoa targeted to open to students in Fall 2008.