When the Class of 2007 arrives 13 months from now, they may very well move into a residence hall unlike any others at Washington University. “Phase 3″ (the working title for the as-of-yet unnamed hall) will put both freshmen and upperclassmen together in the same building.

While Eliot Tower has housed the two groups in the past, this is the first time that a residence hall is being built with the intention to accommodate both.

Assistant Vice Chancellor for Students Justin Carroll explained that it will serve as “swing space” for the Office of Residential Life. In recent years, Residential Life worked to house both larger freshmen classes and higher numbers of upperclassmen choosing to live on the South 40. “Phase 3″ will help this situation, as rooms can be used for both.

“It’s all contingent upon the enrollment,” said Carroll. He noted that, while the increase in both groups living on the South 40 has meant more work for Residential Life, it is a “problem you want to have.” The rise means that more students are interested in attending WU and that current students prefer to stay on-campus, according to Carroll.

Residential Life had expected the increased numbers before they began growing a few years ago, but Carroll added, “It all started happening more rapidly than we anticipated.”

Also distinguishing it from other residence halls, “Phase 3″ will have both doubles and suites of singles and a common room. Previous dorms built in recent years have been almost entirely one or the other. The two types of rooms will be divided on either side of the hallway. Because of design considerations, such as placing pipes and wiring, architects placed similar rooms on top of each other, instead of dividing them by floors, said Carroll.

“Phase 3″ will be built where the parking lot on the south side of Wohl Center was located. The balcony on that side of Wohl was removed to make room for the structure.

Completion of the new residence hall – which was approved for construction by the City of Clayton this spring – will also mark a milestone for the university. Assuming it is on track to be completed by the fall of 2003, Eliot Tower will be torn down that summer, a goal that Residential Life has had for years. In the past, larger numbers of residents necessitated keeping the tower, but “Phase 3″ should offer the space to finally remove the skyscraper. Once it is torn down, the university will begin construction on an addition to Nemerov Residence Hall in the space Eliot currently occupies.

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