Campus will have a whole new look in two years, and two new dorms: the University of Oregon administration plans to demolish the Hamilton and Walton residence halls and replace them with two to three new buildings that are expected to be completed by November 2023.
In April, the Emerald reported that the UO administration was “considering the future” of Hamilton and Walton residence halls and a demolition was an option. Dr. Roger Thompson, the Vice President of Student Services and Enrollment Management, said that the demolition allows the UO to not be constrained by the previous footprints of the existing buildings.
“This is an exciting moment in time,” Thompson said. “Let’s not put limits on things.”
Thompson said he presented the idea to the UO’s Board of Trustees in May and they were quite receptive to the idea of two new dorms.
“The biggest concern raised by trustees was the impact on students in the form of cost, and I feel comfortable that Roger, Michael and team have been thoughtful in both controlling project costs and ensuring there is a range of affordable housing options available to students,” Ross Kari, the chair of the Board’s Trustees Finance and Facilities said in a statement.
Walton Hall (Henry Ward/Emerald)
Thompson said that keeping costs affordable for students was a factor when it came to the new dorms, and adding more rooms will keep the cost down. Thompson said the new residence halls will cost slightly more, but the costs will be spread out among the students.
“That’s the great thing,” Thompson said. “We can keep price to a modest increase.”
The Hamilton and Walton residence halls currently house 1,400 beds between them and as of April, the halls had 1,311 students living between them. The new plans anticipate that the buildings will hold 1,800 beds between them.
Thompson said that he toured schools around the PAC-12 such as Arizona State, University of Arizona, University of Southern California and the University of Washington to gain inspiration for what the space could look like.
Although the discussions about the future of the residence halls have been happening between members of administration and the Board of Trustees, Thompson said that he is seeking student input on what the residence halls may look like.
“As a division, we can’t move forward without talking to a lot of students,” Thompson said. “We need to make sure we’re talking to students, but also more importantly, listening [to students].”
