The newly opened South 40 House will accommodate both the new South 40 dining facilities and upperclassman dorms. (Kivanc Dundar | Student Life)

Washington University’s incoming freshmen and returning upperclassmen are adjusting to changes on the South 40 as the initial phases of construction on the new Umrath House and South 40 House near completion.

Umrath and South 40 House—which replace the former Wohl Center—will house 121 students and provide the primary dining and fitness facilities for all South 40 residents.

“Umrath will house first-year students, and the vast majority of those students live with one other student. There are a few triples as well. South 40 House is designed for upperclassmen and therefore most of the students reside in four-person suite-style housing, that is, they each have their own bedroom, but share a common room and bathroom,” Assistant Vice Chancellor for Students Justin Carroll wrote in an e-mail.

Landscaping for the two new buildings remains unfinished.

All major interior construction and furnishings, however, were completed by the time the first batch of students arrived for pre-orientation programs.

“[The buildings] continue to add great spaces for students to live, which is a high priority for us,” said Mary Elliott, associate director of Residential Life. “We played with color a little more in this building. We’re trying to expand our decorating criteria. Combining them with dining will be a really cool experience.”

Dorm rooms in Umrath and South 40 House provide improved features, including motion sensor lights and memory foam mattresses.

Residents seemed to be pleased with these new accommodations.

“I’m really excited just to see the look on all the freshmen faces, because I think they’re going to be super excited to see what their living arrangements are and all the new people around them and just how nice everything is,” said sophomore Austin Wilmot, an Umrath 2 Washington University Student Associate (WUSA) and South 40 House resident.

“I really believe this is the best environment for students in the nation where they’re both able to learn together and live together,” Wilmot added.

Aside from changes in residential areas, dining on the South 40 has undergone a major transformation over the summer.

Dining areas on the first and lower levels of the South 40 House are replacing Bear’s Den and Center Court.

The lower level houses the new Bear’s Grill and Bakery with limited seating in an area that will be expanded during phase two of construction. The first floor provides a much larger amount of seating along with a scaled-down Bear Mart, salad bar, taqueria and several other food stations.

According to Resident District Manager for Bon Appétit Nadeem Siddiqui, expanded kitchens and service areas have allowed the dining staff to increase the number of dishes made in-house.

While South 40 House is in the second phase of construction, the fitness center will be temporarily lodged in the lower level of Umrath. The center opened with limited hours on Aug. 20. Next year, fitness equipment will be moved to a permanent, expanded location inside South 40 House.

Members of the University community said they are excited to see what Umrath and South 40 houses will add to the campus environment once both phases of construction are finished.

“Just a couple of weeks ago I said to myself, ‘Who’s going to be able to live there?’ But it’s coming along quite nicely,” Chancellor Mark Wrighton said. “What I would call the streetsc
ape is really quite impressive, and to see something like that replacing the older, more traditional buildings that we had there really enhances the South 40 for everyone, and not just the people who will be living there.”