Spurred by the success of the new Shocker Hall student housing facility, Wichita State University is moving forward with consideration of a second new residence hall on its main campus. The 400- to 600-bed residence hall, slated for occupancy in fall semester 2017, will be constructed south of Eck Stadium as part of the Innovation Campus development.

Going ahead with the project is dependent on further market analysis to confirm that there is sufficient student interest to ensure the long-term financial success of the building. No student tuition or state funds will be used to construct it.

The complex is expected to be built in phases and could grow to as many as 1,200 beds in the future. It will house sophomores through graduate students in apartment-style rooms.

Even with Shocker Hall, which opened in August 2014 and houses freshmen, Honors College students and student-athletes, there is additional demand for top-notch housing on campus. The newest facility will help meet that need, says WSU President John Bardo.

“We are asking highly experienced development teams to present us with their best ideas for a 24-hour learn-work-live-play environment for students,” Bardo says. “The old idea of campus housing was embodied in traditional dormitories with cinder block walls, bunk beds and bland cafeterias. We need to meet higher expectations to attract and retain high-quality students.”

A request for qualifications has been posted on the WSU purchasing website, and a development team to finance and construct the project is scheduled to be chosen in May. Construction is expected to begin in November, subject to approval by the Kansas Board of Regents. Resident housing fees will pay for the facility.

The residence hall would replace the housing in Fairmount Towers, located at the corner of 21st Street and Hillside.

Highlights of this new facility are expected to include:

• A small food shop with dining space for up to 20 people.
• A WSU Police substation.
• A hotel-style “grab-and-go” convenience shop for miscellaneous grocery items and personal necessities.
• A fitness room with treadmills, an aerobics area and machines/free weights.
• A theater/game room with a large screen TV, billiards, ping pong and foosball.
• A multipurpose room for group student space or use as a nondenominational worship room.
• Exterior recreational areas including a sand volleyball court, a half-court hard surface basketball court and a picnic area with tables and grills.
• Parking amenities, coordinated with the Innovation Campus master plan.
• A climate-controlled enclosed walkway with access to the future adjacent Innovation Center.

The residence hall would become one of the first wave of buildings included in the university’s new 120-acre Innovation Campus being built on the site of the former Braeburn Golf Course, east of the traditional campus.

Other buildings planned in the first several years include the Experiential Engineering Building, one or more Partnership Buildings to house private company research facilities and a mixed-use set of buildings near 21st Street and Oliver intended for commercial development that includes restaurants, shops and a hotel.