USF Sarasota-Manatee unveils progress on residential dorms, opening in fall

Steven Walker, Sarasota Herald-Tribune
·2 min read
The new student center and residence hall is the first dormitory on the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee campus. Once completed, the building will house 200 students, offices and meeting space, a ballroom/lounge, game room, laundry facilities, bookstore and on-campus dining.
The new student center and residence hall is the first dormitory on the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee campus. Once completed, the building will house 200 students, offices and meeting space, a ballroom/lounge, game room, laundry facilities, bookstore and on-campus dining.

The University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee unveiled progress on its new, nearly-completed student housing building Monday afternoon.

The college's leadership, including President Rhea Law and Chancellor Karen Holbrook, spoke to a crowd of donors, students and community members inside the building in what will later become the building's ballroom. The project, which is estimated to total more than $42 million, will house about 200 students and is set to open for the Fall 2024 semester.

"I'm just so proud of this campus," Law said. "It is a jewel here for Sarasota-Manatee, it's a jewel for our students, and it's a jewel for our community."

Construction began in March of 2023, with USF Sarasota-Manatee seeking to shed its status as a commuter school with the opening of on-campus living options. The campus sits across the street from the Sarasota Bradenton International Airport and just north of New College of Florida. It has an enrollment of about 2,000 students, according to most recent estimates.

Guests sign an interior wall of the new student center and residence hall on the campus of the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee during a construction celebration on Monday, Jan. 22, 2024.
Guests sign an interior wall of the new student center and residence hall on the campus of the University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee during a construction celebration on Monday, Jan. 22, 2024.

The new residences come in three configurations: A double suite with one bathroom for $1,297 a month, or $5,188 a semester; a two-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment for $1,648 a semester, or $6,592 a semester; or a four-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment, for $1,505 a month, or $6,020 a semester.

Alexandra Lopez, the campus' student-governor, spoke at the event. She said the building was built "by the students, for the students."

"Finally, students will have a place of their own to call home on this campus," she said. "A place where everyone can bond and build new beloved traditions in an environment created for students to thrive."

Jason Mitchell, VP of client services for CORE Construction, USF Sarasota-Manatee chancellor Karen Holbrook, center, and USF President Rhea Law, right, admire the view of Sarasota Bay from the sixth floor lounge of the new student center and residence hall on the Sarasota-Manatee campus of the University of South Florida on Monday, Jan. 22, 2024.
Jason Mitchell, VP of client services for CORE Construction, USF Sarasota-Manatee chancellor Karen Holbrook, center, and USF President Rhea Law, right, admire the view of Sarasota Bay from the sixth floor lounge of the new student center and residence hall on the Sarasota-Manatee campus of the University of South Florida on Monday, Jan. 22, 2024.

The top four floors of the six-story building will be used as housing, while the bottom two floors will host a new student center and make space for services that have "outgrown their quarters elsewhere on campus." The building will also include a dining hall, laundry facilities, mail center, game room, ballroom, meeting rooms, study lounges, campus bookstore and offices for student government.

During the event, USF Sarasota-Manatee invited guests to the sixth floor, where residential dorms will overlook the campus with a view of Sarasota's bayfront.

Follow Herald-Tribune Education Reporter Steven Walker on Twitter at @swalker_7. He can be reached at sbwalker@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: University of South Florida Sarasota-Manatee unveils progress on dorms