James Schank
[follow id=”CPMustangNews”]
Cal Poly’s student population is growing fast, and a growing demand for on-campus housing is right behind.
In May of this year, Cal Poly announced plans to build an additional 1,400 units of on-campus housing. On Nov. 6, there will be a public forum in Julian A. McPhee University Union, room 220 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. to update the community on the university’s plan and address any concerns regarding the project.
“The goal is to listen and hear what ideas folks have, to see if the modifications can be made to the current plans,” Vice President for Student Affairs Keith Humphrey said. “We deeply value the relationship we have with our neighbors and want to make sure we are building a quality facility.”
Humphrey said the Final Environmental Impact Report would be a topic of discussion at the forum.
The impact report is geared to address the environmental effect the housing project could have on the surrounding area and community as a whole. These issues include increases in traffic, the flow of sound, light and pollution — “the whole range,” Humphrey said.
This new building is to be erected in what is now a student parking lot on Grand Avenue across from Yosemite Hall.
“One of the reasons why that site is ideal is because on a busy day of school, it is more than half empty,” he said. “But the impact of taking that land away will not be harsh.”
Another part of the plan to is construct a three- to four-level parking garage, which will yield several hundred additional parking spaces.
The project is scheduled to commence in the 2014-15 academic year and be completed approximately six years from now — two years shy of Armstrong’s target date for increasing enrollment at the university by approximately 5,000 students.
A recent market study shows the current demand for beds on-campus is at about 10,300, of which Cal Poly provides 7,200. Even with the new housing project, targeted for completion in the 2018-19 academic year, the university still falls 1,700 beds short of the current demand.