The University of Minnesota is considering a $99 million renovation for Pioneer Hall, adding restrooms and elbow room to the aging dormitory, as well as a new dining center for the 2,800 students who live in the four-dorm Superblock.
The U’s board of regents, however, is not sold on the plan, which would add just three beds to the 693-bed hall on the East Bank campus in Minneapolis when the university is looking to expand on-campus housing.
At a facilities committee meeting Wednesday, regents challenged the staff’s cost estimates, which seemed to favor the $99 million option, and questioned whether a costly remodel makes the most sense.
Other options include shuttering the 88-year-old building, making only short-term improvements or demolishing and replacing it.
Regent Thomas Anderson, who has been touring colleges with his teenage children, said Pioneer Hall is an Ivy League-style dorm long on history but short on space and amenities. He said the dorm clearly needs improvement, but he’s not convinced the university has settled on the right plan.
“I love to keep the tradition. I struggle with the $100 million price tag and not adding beds,” he said.
The plan would expand Pioneer Hall’s footprint by 50 percent to 241,000 square feet, doubling the number of dorm showers and adding 25 percent more bathrooms.
The street view of the building wouldn’t change much because the university wants to maintain the character that has Pioneer Hall being considered for designation as a historic place. Rather, much of the work would take place in what is now the courtyard.
NO MORE BASEMENT MEALS
Today, two of the four Superblock dorms, Pioneer and Centennial, have dining areas. Both are underground, and Pioneer’s kitchen is nearing the end of its useful life.
The renovation calls for a single $23 million, 850-seat dining facility on Pioneer’s ground floor, large enough to serve all Superblock students.
“The dining is just as significant an opportunity to enhance the student experience,” said Pam Wheelock, vice president for university services.
Regents are expected to vote on the future of Pioneer Hall later this year. If the renovation is approved, the hall would re-open in fall 2019.
The U would borrow money to pay for the project and raise student room and board rates to pay it off. The U has some of the Big Ten’s lowest housing rates, and leaders are willing to start charging more for better facilities to aid in recruitment.
U TAKES OVER PRIVATE APARTMENTS
Meanwhile, regents on Wednesday approved five-year master leases for two private apartment buildings, placing another 936 beds under the university’s control at an initial annual cost of $7.8 million.
The larger of the two is Radius at 15th, near the Gibson-Nagurski football practice facility. The other is Keeler Apartments along Fraternity Row.
Rents will stay about the same.
U leaders have said they want to place more first-year and transfer students in university-run housing because students perform better academically in that setting. The U also is looking to make more student housing available overall, in anticipation of enrollment growth.
The leases approved Wednesday will nearly double the number of university-run apartments.
The university still is looking for additional apartment properties to lease or buy.
“We believe this is a key strategy to help us advance our enrollment goals,” Wheelock said of master-lease agreements.
