University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa to Build New Student Housing

The Board of Regents for the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa recently approved the construction of a new student housing facility on campus, according to a university news release. The facility has an estimated cost of $156.9 million and is scheduled for completion by the beginning of the fall 2025 semester. The project will be privately financed as part of a public-private partnership (P3) with Greystar Real Estate Partners, who officially partnered with the university in June 2020.

The facility will have the capacity for 558 beds across 316 units (either one-, two-, three-, or four-bedroom) in two buildings of 18 stories and 12 stories. The community will also include amenities like a childcare facility, café and retail space, study rooms, laundry facilities, a mailroom, outdoor amenity spaces, and bike storage, the news release reports.

“This is a priority project for UH, as it will provide our students with new and additional housing opportunities right here on campus,” said Jan Gouveia, UH Vice President of Administration. “This new student housing facility will have a long-lasting impact on our campus community as it addresses multiple needs, including providing more quality and affordable housing options, on-campus childcare, and additional retail services.”

According to the terms of the agreement, Greystar completed the facility’s design and environmental assessment as well as obtained the required discretionary approvals, according to the news release. The project will be owned, operated, and maintained by the non-profit student housing entity Collegiate Housing Foundation. The new student housing facility is the second P3 project of its kind on the UH campus.

“This is just the latest example of UH’s goal of developing alternative revenue streams to affordably build modern educational facilities without raising tuition and being overly reliant on taxpayers,” said UH Vice President for Budget and Finance and CFO Kalbert Young.

About the Author

Matt Jones is senior editor of Spaces4Learning. He can be reached at [email protected].

Featured

  • TCU Marks Campus Expansion Milestone

    Texas Christian University in Fort Worth, Texas, recently held a topping-out ceremony to mark progress on a major campus expansion effort including four new residential facilities and a five-story parking garage, according to a news release.

  • Wold Completes Geothermal Projects at Two Minnesota Schools

    Wold Architects & Engineers recently announced that it has completed two geothermal expansion projects for Mounds View Public Schools in Shoreview, Minn., according to a news release. The work at Highview Middle School and Irondale High School serves the district’s long-term goal of reducing energy costs and dependency on non-renewable fuel sources, as well as improving building performance.

  • Designing for Every Mind

    Learning environments have the power to shape not just what students know, but who they become. When a school is designed with genuine empathy—for the full range of ways students think, sense, and engage with the world—it becomes more than a building. It becomes a catalyst for growth, confidence, and belonging. That is the animating idea behind neurodiverse design, and it is one that is transforming how more architects and designers are thinking about school design.

  • Year-Round Schools Require Year-Round Indoor Air Quality Planning

    While many schools are out for the summer, year-round schools follow a more “balanced” schedule with shorter, more frequent breaks spaced throughout the school year. Even though this offers educational benefits, these facilities have less downtime for building maintenance. This can become an issue when facilities managers overlook the importance of routine HVAC maintenance and air duct cleaning services.