FALL SPORTS
PREVIEW
PAGE 25
Towson’s campus and community news source
Thursday, 09-1-11
West Side Story
jglass, Barton expand
st Village housing
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Master M
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ALISSA KATZ
Senior Editor
After years of planning and early morning sleep disruptions frrJb-Aanstruction, West Village is com¬
plete with the opening of the Commons, two new residence hallflVnd a 1,500-space parking garage.
The University's Master Plan always identified West Village ps growth for the residential community,
according to David Mayhew, director of facilities management.
Some students who will be the first to live in the newest residence halls said they were excited
about moving in.
Freshman secondary education major Chris Quirk is an Honors College student who lives in
Douglass.
wait for the independence that comes with moving out of the house,"
ave to share a bathroom with 13 other girls in the morning is nice."
;e’s excited about the bathroom setup in the new buildings,
aid. “Also having everything just be new and clean is a plus.”
re similar to the other West Village residence halls,
Раса
and Tubman, but
eristics.
USA SHANTY
Staff Writer
“Cliche as it soimds, 1 c;
she said. “The fact that I
Freshman Ally Rickett si
“I think it’s awesome," s
Douglass and Barton a:
have a few newer characteris
The buildings’ HVAC system is more efficient for heating and cooling, Jerry Dieringer, assistant
vice president for student affairs and director of Housing and Residence Life, said. Overall, the energy
consciousness and efficiency of the buildings is more up-to-date.
Freshman Liz Saint said she is looking forward to the location of her new dorm in relation to what
activities she’ll be participating in.
"1 will be on swim team, so it is a good distance from the pool and is near food," she said.
Apart from the all-you-care-to-eat dining facility in the Commons, HRL’s new office has moved from
Newell’s basement, where it was located for the past 13 years, to the third floor of the Commons.
See DORM, page 1 1
With a new gateway and entrance
Arts building, and an expanding West Village, the ’
underway. . ■■■L.
"What you’re seeing in terms of growth on campus is really just the culmi¬
nation of many, many years of planning and funding finally coming through,"
Assistant to the President Marina Cooper said. “It's just a very exciting time
to be at Towson.”
In 2003, the University developed a Master Plan to coordinate new projects
and construction on campus. This plan has been the template and timeline
for more than $300 million in construction that the University has invested in
the past five years alone, according to Director of Architecture and Engineering
David Mayhew.
“Since the Master Plan, we identified potential for 3,000 new beds in West
Village," Mayhew said. "With
Раса,
Tubman, Barton and Douglass having been
completed in the last five years, we’ve delivered about 1,300 of those beds.
Future phases will deliver those additional beds."
Mayhew said the reason for expanding westward is to create a more efficient
campus with specific precincts for residential buildings and academic build¬
ings. West Village is housing precinct.
“Developing new residential and support buildings to the west allows us to
locate academic buildings together in the main core of campus," Mayhew said.
See EXPAND, page 11
Photo by Casey Prather/ The Towerlight