Sabine Sim, a first-year student at Dalhousie University, has already started the search for housing for next year. She is one of many students who may benefit from the new residence just approved to be built on campus.
Sim said, “[searching for a house] is kind of hard, a lot of the stuff is really expensive or is really far from campus. There are some houses that are closer, but they also look run down.”
Dalhousie’s plan for the new residence was approved by its Board of Governors in August and is part of the university’s 10-year housing plan to build additional beds on campus.
The residence is expected to open for students in 2027 and will accommodate approximately 200 students.
Janet Bryson, Dalhousie’s director of media relations and issues management, declined the Gazette’s interview request on behalf of the university and instead provided a statement.
The statement said in part, “we expect to break ground on a new six-storey student residence in Halifax next spring to increase student housing capacity on campus.”
The new residence will be an L-shaped building located between Seymour and Henry Street, behind the Dalhousie Arts Centre on the Studley Campus.
Sim said, “I live in Gerard, and I think adding another one here [on Studley campus] would be really beneficial. ‘Cause honestly the walk back and forth sucks.”
To make room for the new residence, Dalhousie plans to tear down the Mini Residences which stand where the new residence will be built. This means losing beds for approximately 45 students until construction is completed.
Ava Khan is among the many upper-year students who have had a difficult time finding housing off-campus.
“It was brutal … it was hard to find a place at all, even getting a showing of a place,” Khan said. “I feel landlords have a lot more power than tenants here.”
Khan also said she wouldn’t necessarily want to go back into residence unless there are less strict rules and regulations for upper year students.
“I think most people kind of like the off-campus living as an option. To live with your friends and not be restricted by some of the rules of the school,” she said. “I am sure people who want that would go, but I probably wouldn’t.”
According to Bryson’s statement, the new residence’s housing options addressed feedback from Dalhousie students like Khan who wanted more apartment-style living.
It also said the building will include “one-bedroom nano units, standard one-bedroom units, and variations of up to four-bedroom units equipped with in-suite kitchen and laundry facilities.”
The new residence will feature suite types unlike the ones offered in the university’s current residences. The university is hoping these options will appeal to more upper year students rather than just first years.
While the overall cost of the construction has yet to be determined by the university, Bryson’s statement clarifies that “the project will ultimately be financed using external debt and repaid through residence fees.”
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