UVA panel endorses design for new student housing

A subcommittee of the University of Virginia’s Board of Visitors held a special meeting this week to review the schematic design for a $160 million project to build 780 bedrooms in a new building on Ivy Road.

“It is part of the strategic plan to house all of our second year students on grounds along with our first years,” said Colette Sheehy, the Senior Vice President for Operations and State Government Relations.

Sheehy said UVA has just completed the housing assignment process for the next academic year and there is an overwhelming demand for on-Grounds housing.

Lucia Gambacini and Nina Broderick reported on February 12, 2025 in the Cavalier Daily that even with the recent opening of two new residence halls this academic year, UVA still doesn’t have enough spaces for everyone who wants one.

“From the fall of 21 to the fall of 25, applications for on-Grounds upper-class housing have increased by 81 percent in this particular year for, for the upcoming academic year,” Sheehy said. “The demand really outstripped our ability to have enough capacity, enough inventory to address all of those students who expressed a desire to live on-Grounds.”

Sheehy said living on-Grounds is a less expensive option for students and though there is no mandate for second-years to live on campus, internal marketing appears to be working.

The University issued a request for qualifications in April 2024 for firms who might be interested in helping build up to 2,000 new beds at two sites. One would be on land on Emmet Street at the site of the now-demolished University Gardens apartment complex and the other would be at the western end of UVA’s new Emmet-Ivy precinct. (read the story)

The Buildings and Grounds Committee last saw the proposal in December and the special meeting was held to get approval so ground can be broken in the second week of March.

University of Virginia Architect Alice Raucher said the new residence halls will be at the western end of a pedestrian promenade that will lead from Emmet Street. She said the two buildings will fit into the built environment that will emerge after construction of many components.

“The buildings, I think, are appropriately scaled to consider the surrounding context,” Raucher said. “The buildings to the north, which are along the tracks and west along Copley Road are six stories, which is approximately the same height as the adjacent Virginia Guest House. While the building along Ivy Road is five stories, which is approximately the same height as the Karsh Institute of Democracy, the height of the building along Ivy Road, I think, is also sensitive to the scale of the adjacent residential neighborhood, as well as to the city’s entrance corridor guidelines.”

Of course, the project will not be reviewed by the city in any fashion as the underlying land is an entity of the Commonwealth of Virginia and not subject to local land use ordinances.

The image shows storefronts on the ground floor on the building for services but Raucher said these are placeholders for now. Red brick will be used to match the style at the Karsh Institute of Democracy next door.

Right across Copeley Road is 2117 Ivy Road, a private ten-story student apartment building allowed under a rezoning by City Council in December 2023 under the older zoning rules. The city has approved a street and sidewalk closure for construction of that project that will last from February 10, 2025 to May 10, 2027. The cost to do so is $40,950 for the street and $8,190 for the sidewalk.

Raucher said that UVA has control over Copeley Road and will be working with the Virginia Department of Transportation to improve and widen the streetscape.

The faculty representative to the Board of Visitors pointed out that this location is a major transportation corridor for people seeking to get to the University.

“This is a major running route for runners and walkers that are going around Grounds,” said Michael Kennedy. “This is the major way that the Emmett Ivy Garage parkers go to baseball, go to basketball. So adding in the students walking along with the crowds is surely going to push people onto the street at times where you really don’t want people on the street.”

Kennedy also said the intersection of Emmet, Ivy, and University Avenue may become overloaded with the new pedestrian traffic. He acknowledged there is discussion of a potential bridge, but pointed out there’s no funding for that at this time.

“I think that’s something for either this board or a future board to study along with the administration,” Kennedy said. “Because it’s, you know, I drive in that way every single day and it’s bad now and adding this will make it worse.”

The committee approved the schematic design and no further approval is necessary.

Before you go: This post was originally published in the February 21, 2025 edition of Charlottesville Community Engagement, a newsletter powered by Substack since July 2020. The idea is to get as many stories out as possible each day, and then some of the material ends up here. Sometimes stories are posted here first. All of this is an experiment powered by Town Crier Productions, currently a one-person company that seeks to be as prolific as possible.