Photo taken by: Mary Laing / Photo Editor
MEGHAN GUATTERY
Special to The Leader
With the 2014-15 academic year underway, 75 students have settled into their new rooms in the University Village townhouses lining Ring Road.
However, surrounded by the commotion and excitement of move-in weekend, three of the townhouses stand vacant and are yet to be completed by Burgio & Campofelice General Contractors and the 31 subcontractors on the project.
Since its soft opening on August 2, the seven-building, four acre, $30 million project has attracted the attention of many who set foot on campus.
A large commons building welcomes residents at the main entrance of the complex. Consisting of a spacious lobby, large upstairs lounge, kitchenette, two fireplaces, conference rooms, a copy and printer alcove along with many other amenities, the building has many necessities that students do not have access to in the dormitories.
Just past the commons building you will find six buildings with names representing places all over the world, from Holland and Barcelona to Niagara.
Each of the 49 independent-living style, air-conditioned student units consists of four private bedrooms with full size beds, a full kitchen, living room, laundry unit, dining bar and two full bathrooms.
“Its been wonderful living in the townhouses,” said junior journalism major Jess LaBella. “It feels more homey than a regular dorm room. It’s really peaceful and quiet, besides the construction of course.”
While the scheduled completion date for the project was in July, the construction crew continues to work on three of the buildings, as well as the surrounding landscaping and structures.
“I’ve been woken up twice,” said junior music education major Sara Walsh. “Once because they were pressure washing the sidewalk outside my room and once because of the construction. You can definitely hear it from our townhouse.”
While some of the residents have been bothered by the noise and dirt the ongoing construction has caused, others have simply tried to ignore the commotion.
“It’s more of an eyesore than anything, but you get used to it,” said LaBella.
However, construction has not been the only problem residents of the new complex have been facing.
“We have had several problems,” said Walsh, “from the air conditioning being wired backwards to the shower not getting hot; a lot has gone wrong. But they have been pretty prompt with fixing the things that have gone wrong, and Dan has been incredibly helpful.”
Having been a Residence Director for 14 years at Fredonia, Dan Goodwin knows just about all there is to know when it comes to on-campus living. He recently accepted his new title as Assistant Director and Townhouse Coordinator.
“It’s rather nice that the construction crew is still around, now that the students are here, so they can fix the little problems we have been having,” said Goodwin.
After a heavy push by the administration to fill the homes in the spring semester, there are quite a few theories as to why they were unsuccessful.
“I’m not really surprised they didn’t fill all of the buildings,” said LaBella. “I think they were a little overzealous thinking they were going to fill them all at the price tag they’re asking.”
The townhouses are the most expensive on-campus housing option with a price of $4,500 per semester.
Goodwin had another idea as to why more than half of the 196 available rooms remain empty.
“I think timing was the main thing,” said Goodwin. “Most students who were moving off-campus had already signed their leases.”
Residence Life Director Kathy Forster and the office of Residence Life have been pushing the townhouse option for upperclassmen.
“Cost inhibits people,” said Forster, “but when you live off-campus there are lots of hidden costs that tend to pop up. With the townhouses, everything is included. Students with scholarships who are required to live on-campus have this independent style living experience available to them, while still living on-campus.”
There was little effort put in by the administration last year to provide students with an image of what the townhouses would look like when they were finished. The only help students had in imagining just how great the buildings would really be was from one small, computer-rendered image that stood alone on the Fredonia website for months.
“Even with all the emails the administration sent out, no one really knew how nice they were going to be,” said LaBella.
However, Goodwin and Forster are confident the school will be able to fill the townhouses for the next academic year, now that students will be able to see the buildings.
“Students are our biggest seller,” said Forster. “Once they’re posting pictures online and enjoying living there, they’ll sell it for us.”
A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the University Village townhouses will be held on Wednesday, Sept. 3 at 11 a.m. A reception will follow the ceremony and tours will be available.