UConn Trustees Approve Regional Housing in Stamford

STORRS/STAMFORD, CT — The University of Connecticut Board of Trustees on Wednesday voted unanimously to add student housing near the university's regional campus in Stamford.

The 116 housing units will occupy a building at 900 Washington Boulevard.

Here are some highlights of the project.

• The first-floor will include a meeting room, resident mailboxes, staff offices and a security desk.
• The second-floor lounge will include small study rooms and a lounge for residents’ use. There will also be apartments on the second floor.
• Each resident floor will include an open study lounge as well as a mix of studio, one- and two-bedroom apartments.
• The 116 apartments have an expected capacity for housing a maximum of 350 students (probably starting with about 290 when the first group moves in for the fall 2017 semester).
• Most bedrooms will be designed to accommodate two residents.
• Each apartment includes bedroom(s), a kitchen, laundry facilities, bathroom(s) and a living room.
• The apartments will be furnished and, like dorms and apartments in Storrs, students will need to bring cooking items, flatware, plates, sheets, towels, and other personal items.
• The units will come with 100 parking spaces.

UConn has a 25-year lease on the property with four renewal options with an first-year cost to the university of $2.6 million, Executive Vice President for Administration and Chief Financial Officer Scott Jordan said.

But that still translates into discounted housing when the apartments become available for the fall of 2017, he said. UConn will be charging $995 per month for shared bedrooms and $1,248 per month for single rooms, based on 12-month resident leases, Jordan said. According to information in the trustees meeting packet, the average one-bedroom rent in Stamford is $1,900 per month and $2,700 per month for a two-bedroom unit.

Major factors contributing to the decision, Jordan said, are that just 100 of the 1,564 UConn-Stamford students actually live in Stamford and that the campus is the only regional campus growing in enrollment.

Photo Credit: Project rendering furnished by UConn