by Britney Weber
Senior Staff Writer
“The trustees made several major decisions this weekend at one of the most significant board meetings that I’ve been privileged to be a part of at Bryan,” said President Stephen Livesay in an e-mail sent this week to the faculty and staff at Bryan College.
Bryan plans to have two new student housing dorms built by August of next year. Although the dorms have been approved for construction, there are still several specifics that have yet to be decided such as occupancy and design specifics.
“The concept has been approved,” said Livesay. “Filling in all the details has yet to be determined…It’s up to the students and faculty to get that settled.”
These dorms are a needed change, considering the evidences of growth that Bryan College has been experiencing.
“We’re delighted that our applications for next fall are running double what they were running at this time last year,” said Livesay in the e-mail.
The addition of these halls will reduce the number of triple rooms in the main dorms. Also, the dorms, for which names have not yet been decided, are to be located off the new entrance, next to the future softball field and current soccer field.
“We wanted to find a location on campus that wasn’t so far off that you needed a car to drive to,” said Vice President of Operations Tim Hostetler. The new dorms will be the same distance from the cafeteria as Robinson dorm.
The dorms will resemble town houses, each with its own outdoor entrance, according to Hostetler. Preliminary plans show that each apartment will be two levels and house four students, similar to a Woodlee or Arnold suite. Each apartment will likely have a living room, study, kitchenette, two full baths, two bedrooms and will be furnished as the dorms are.
The dorms will house a total of 60 students, with 30 per building. Finalized plans are expected by the end of the month Groundbreaking is expected to take place this coming January, Livesay said.
“Our goal is to have the new entrance completed as well as the new apartments by August 2010,” said Livesay.
Further specifics are to be addressed towards the end of the week.