Published Wednesday, October 11th, 2023
The new residence hall will be the first residence hall built since the construction of Bowen Hall in 1966 and will benefit students for years to come.
Wayne State College, in conjunction with Alley Poyner Macchietto Architecture in Omaha and Hausmann Construction in Norfolk, is proud to announce that ground was broken Oct. 11 for the college’s new residence hall.
Located east of the Center for Applied Technology building and near the corner of Wendt Drive and Walnut Street, it will be the first residence hall built since the construction of Bowen Hall in 1966. It will be paid for via a revenue bond.
“It’s been 57 years since our last residence hall was built, and we were long overdue,” said Dr. Marysz Rames, president of Wayne State. “After years of focus groups and strategic planning, I’m extremely pleased that we were able to officially break ground on this project. We received amazing support from everyone regarding this project, and our students will greatly benefit from the vision exhibited by so many people.”
The new, four-story structure will accommodate 276 new and returning students and feature 168 suite-style beds and 108 traditional beds. The main lobby will have an open kitchen, two televisions, a lounge area, pool table, and a front desk reception area. Each floor above the main lobby will have a smaller lounge area.
An exercise area – complete with treadmills, small weights, and stair climbers – will be on the second floor. The third and fourth floor lounges will have different study area options such as booths, tables, and soft chairs.
C.D. Douglas, vice president for student affairs at Wayne State, said the project will fulfill several requests expressed by recent students.
“Wayne State’s new residence hall will provide students with the option to live in suite-style housing, which they have indicated they want in several polls and focus groups with students,” said Douglas. “In addition to suite-style rooms, the new hall will also provide the campus with traditional double occupancy rooms, along with a host of amenities such as a modern, open kitchen, exercise area, and lounges with recreational activities such as pool tables. We are excited to add the new hall to Wayne State’s housing inventory to continue to meet the needs of our students.”
The residence hall was designed by Alley Poyner Macchietto Architecture in Omaha, and construction is being done by Hausmann Construction in Norfolk. Hausmann Construction is also working on Wayne State’s Athletic and Recreation Facility Renovation and Addition project.
The residence hall is expected to be completed in January 2025.