With demolition making room for dorm, demand for rooms appears high

Jul. 2—A mound of rubble has been shrinking this week on a downtown Decatur street corner where a new Alabama Center for the Arts dormitory will open within two years and possibly have more rooms than originally envisioned.

Demolition and debris removal began Saturday on the site of the planned dorm at the corner of Johnston Street Southeast and First Avenue.

"The location for the dormitories for the Alabama Center for the Arts is owned by the Alabama Center for the Arts Foundation. The ACA Foundation is clearing the land in preparation to transfer the property to the Center," said Rachel Bunning, Alabama Community College System communications and marketing administrator.

"We expect that transfer to take place as early as August and for design and approval efforts (of the dorm) to begin within four to six months of that time."

The ACA Foundation is paying about $110,000 for the demolition of the property and will be reimbursed $40,000 by the state for asbestos removal.

Philip Mann, ACA director of promotion and economic development, said the hope is that the ACA can "expand their footprint" with a dorm option for out-of-town students.

State Sen. Arthur Orr helped to secure a $15 million grant for the construction of the dormitory. With the state having many other projects in the works, Orr said one way to speed up the dorm construction was by having the ACA Foundation move forward with demolition.

The dorms were projected to be move-in ready by August 2022, but an updated timeline suggests that construction will not be complete until as early as spring 2023.

"We want to get it right, and I think what's going to be very exciting is when we have approved plans for people to get excited about," Mann said.

More than 100 ACA students expressed interest in the housing in recent studies conducted by the ACA.

"One of the main things that stands out in my mind is the number of students who are interested in living in a dorm situation," Orr said.

The original plans included three to four floors, housing between 70 and 120 students. Due to the increased interest, architects are considering adding more rooms or an additional floor.

In an effort to include the students in the project, two studies have been conducted to gather student preferences for the building plans. An internal study organized by Calhoun and Athens State University administrators showed that students prefer apartment-style dorms.

"Students are really interested in housing in which they're more independent," said Stephen Spencer, dean of Arts and Humanities for Athens State.

This dormitory will be the first housing project for the ACA. Until now, students have not been able to live on campus.

"It provides the opportunity for them to have the full residential college experience and I think that's really important for a place where the students are studying creative arts because they are not only in traditional classes, but so much of their work happens outside the classroom," Spencer said.

The ACA is a partnership between Athens State and Calhoun Community College. The program allows students to take the first two years of classes through Calhoun and the last two years through Athens State, ultimately receiving their Bachelor of Arts degree. The ACA is housed in two buildings, one for performing arts and the other for visual arts, in downtown Decatur.

"I'm really pleased that students are interested (in the dorm) because it's going to contribute to having a really strong community of students who are studying the arts at the ACA," Spencer said.

—emily.griffith@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2460. Twitter @EmilyAn25262769.