Trees were uprooted and re-located to a temporary nursery on campus. Power lines were removed and re-routed to existing buildings. Underground utility lines were laid and are prepared to be connected. Now, the real work can begin to construct the new Student Housing Village on the Coral Gables campus.
Concrete trucks arrived on the site last week and began pouring concrete into the massive 300-cubic-yard pits that will serve as foundational footings for the building’s stilt-like supports. All total, the project will require 40,000 cubic yards of concrete, 3,000 tons of rebar and 800,000 pounds of post tension cables.
While the 12-acre construction site may have appeared quiet over the past few months, Juan Endara, senior project manager, says that is all about to change. As the concrete foundations are completed over the next 5 months, the process of vertical construction will follow closely behind.
“The first months of any large-scale construction project include a lot of behind the scenes and underground work,” Endara said. “But now that we have the necessary permits and the site work has been completed, the project will rapidly ramp up its above-ground construction.”
Throughout the next 18 months of construction, the campus community can expect roadway closures and other construction-related disruptions. But Patricia A. Whitely, vice president for student affairs, says it’s all worth it.
“Any project of this size, much like the Shalala Student Center, requires some short-term disruptions in service of the long-term gains,” Whitely says. “The Student Housing Village will overwhelmingly transform and improve the student experience on campus for generations to come."
Faculty, staff and students are encouraged to monitor their University e-mail as well as other sources of official University communications for updates regarding campus disruptions related to construction.
Slated to open to residents in the Fall of 2019, the Student Housing Village is the first phase of the University’s 10-year strategic plan to modernize its student housing facilities. Over the next decade, new on-campus housing will re-define what it means to live, learn, work and meet at the University of Miami. From its ground-level community spaces including a large exhibition center and a 200-seat auditorium to its modern suites and apartments for 1,115 upperclass students, the village aims to set a new standard in campus housing.
“Throughout the design process, we have been intentional to consider the needs and expectations of the next generation of students coming to campus,” says Jim Smart, executive director of the Department of Housing and Residential Life. “From the integrated technology to the unique amenities and spaces we’ve included within this village, we’ve thought about how students of today and tomorrow with live, learn and thrive while living with us on campus.”
Learn more about the Student Housing Village as well as the 10-year Housing Facilities Strategic Plan by visiting miami.edu/newstudenthousing.
