Construction is set to begin next week on the 775-student Bancroft Residence Hall at the University of California at Berkeley.
The Daily Californian reports that the $94 million building is scheduled to open for the fall 2018 semester. It will replace Stiles Hall and the parking lot behind it.
As construction begins, the campus faces a housing shortage. Several dozen students are living this semester in residence halls at nearby Mills College and Holy Names University because of the unavailability of on-campus housing.
Most students in Bancroft Hall will live in double-occupancy rooms.
Standing eight stories tall, the Bancroft Residence Hall will include 7,000 square feet of retail space as well as 5,300 square feet allocated for the organizations now housed in Stiles Hall.
American Campus Communities, a private company that partners with universities to provide on-campus housing, will own the new building and pay the campus a fee in a long-term leasing agreement.
Like other students living in on-campus housing, Bancroft Hall residents will have meal plans. Cal Dining intends to increase dining hall hours in response to the increased demand but will not build any new dining halls, according to campus spokesperson Adam Ratliff.
