THE NEW STUDENT HOUSING COMPLEX THAT FRONTS LAKE OSCEOLA BOASTS AN ARRAY OF THE MOST MODERN, ATTRACTIVE, AND ECO-FRIENDLY ARCHITECTURAL FEATURES IMAGINABLE, yet arguably the most emblematic are its open-air, front porches that look out—from the stairwells on five different levels—onto Lake Osceola, Cobb Fountain, the Shalala Student Center, the Fate Bridge—essentially the University’s “downtown.”

Porches have long conveyed a sense of home, community, and connection, and now as the first University of Miami students prepare to enter the appropriately named Lakeside Village, they will experience home, community, and connection as never before on the Coral Gables campus.

James Smart, M.S.Ed. ’96, associate vice president for student affairs housing strategic initiatives, has watched the new architectural marvel unfold, literary right before his eyes. His office within Housing and Residential Life looks onto the lakefront construction site—an area once a parking lot—so for the eight years between the time the white paper was submitted to launch the project until the last liriope was planted in the rooftop green space, Smart gazed daily out his window and watched the structure take shape.

"I've learned a lot about architecture in the last eight years,” Smart says, noting that when traditional dormitories were built in the 1950s and ’60s, no one thought about them as part of the educational system. “Over these 50 years, we’ve learned that education doesn’t just happen in the classroom.”

“We’ve had the opportunity with Lakeside Village and the subsequent phases of this strategic plan to really think about how we want to make the student housing experience here a model,” he notes. “That chance doesn’t happen that often, and so for me, with 40-plus years in the field, it’s like working on your thesis—you apply everything you’ve ever learned.”

Jon Baldessari, executive director of housing operations and facilities, joined the University in the early 1990s when new notions about residential college systems were emerging nationally.

“We became much more student-centered and holistic in our understanding of education and began focusing on all the things we look at today that help students persist so they can nail their career choice and be successful,” Baldessari says.

Both leaders concur that the need for new housing became increasingly urgent. Most campus buildings, built in the post-World War II era of the 1950s and 1960s, were requiring more money and attention to maintain dated mechanical systems, and University Village, opened in 2006, was the last residential construction completed. The idea to replace student housing had been explored for years, Smart says, but hadn’t risen to priority status. By 2012—with more students wanting to live on campus, new data demonstrating the impact of housing on student success, and changes pending in University leadership—there was impetus for action.

Smart worked closely with Patricia A. Whitely, Ed.D. ’94, vice president for student affairs, to develop the report submitted that year recommending an assessment of campus buildings.

Whitely, who has served in her role since 1997, has held a range of positions that put her closely in touch with students. Her ear is tuned to hear what students want from their college experience.

“Our focus as a university is on our students,” Whitely says, noting that in 2012 “one of the things we had to do before tackling housing for first-year students was to build housing for sophomores, juniors, and seniors.”

The proposal to build something was a small first step. Ascertaining the national standard, deciding on the design to fit the master plan, and determining the complexities of a housing project for the 21st century—all within budget—was a leap into the unknown. Many voices—faculty, students, and parents, as well as staff in facilities and real estate divisions—expressed opinions of what to do.

“It’s been collectively hundreds, thousands of inputs into this process of being able to create a housing system that we are confident supports student education as well as student development into the 21st century,” Smart says. The team went through several iterations of design, and the final plan was selected from a design competition—a decision majorly influenced by the opening of the Shalala Student Center.

“That changed the campus,” Smart says. “We’d always talked about the lake as being the heart of the campus, and with the construction of the new center and renovations at the Whitten Center, it was becoming a hub of activity the way we’d imagined,” he adds.

The shimmering glass-and-pillars structure on the north side of the lake had a rippling effect. “When architecture is done well, it adds values in ways that you wouldn’t anticipate. We wanted to bring that same sense of energy to the south side of the lake,” says Smart.

Jessica Brumley, vice president for facilities operations and planning, joined the University in early 2018 and inherited the reins of the project.

“It’s been a fabulous opportunity professionally to jump into a project of this magnitude, one with such a visible, identifiable presence, together with Pat Whitely and her team,” says Brumley.

“So many parties—project managers, financial staff, central staff, and others—had to come together behind the scenes to make this possible,” she states. “This project puts a stake in the ground for the University’s future. The Braman Miller Center for Jewish Life and the Toppel Career Center have broadened our presence on Ponce. This project, with its depth and volume, serves to say: ‘We’re here—and we’re making a statement.’ ”

A UNIQUELY MIAMI DESIGN

Elevating the student residential spaces on 25-foot pilotis, or reinforced concrete pillars, frees the ground-level for gardens and lush tropical landscaping, promotes natural air flow, and allows for a comfortable outdoor space and a range of public functions.

The stats are impressive—545,000 square feet, 1,115 beds, 121 suite units (312 beds), 329 apartments (803 beds), and six floors with a mezzanine section near the main lobby (which will host Student Affairs office space).

The complex is composed of 25 residential nodes, strung together as a necklace to produce a single undulating structure. Dividing the building into clusters reduces its massiveness as a singular structure and introduces natural daylight and views into the interior circulation spaces. Three different façades—simulated wood, metal, and concrete/stucco—reflect the natural feel of the site and enhance the concept of community. These same motifs and colors weave through the interior and exterior of the building.

The complex intends to create a destination space where residential students have everything they need to live and thrive on campus. Yet the Outdoor Adventure Center, located at ground level, celebrates the fact that South Florida is truly a paradise. There, students can scale the climbing wall as a team-building exercise and also book off-campus excursions, such as kayaking and nature walks.

“One of the questions the University has been asking itself is, ‘how do we connect students to the campus and the local community?’— now we have the chance,” says Mike Piacentino, B.S.C. ’14, M.A. ’18, manager of marketing, communications, and development.

DORMS: YOU'VE COME A LONG WAY

From the eight-unit women’s dormitory on LeJeune and Santander, opened in 1927 and operated by “Mom and Pop Koch,” to Lakeside Village and phases of the Housing Facilities Strategic Plan to follow, student housing at the University has come a long way.

Among the most important in terms of supporting student success is the understanding of how students evolve during their time in college.

“There’s a ton of change that happens between a student’s first and senior years, and this period is the last time where you’re going to have that type of change,” says Whitely, noting that the University actively seeks to align housing assignments to students’ development.

With Lakeside complete, the next phase is Centennial Village, which calls for the replacement of Stanford Residential College with two new residential colleges, followed by the removal of Hecht Residential College, which also will be replaced with two new residential colleges. Phase Three entails the renovation or replacement of both Eaton and Mahoney-Pearson residential colleges.

Smart says the new construction advances the aspirational goals of the University’s Roadmap to Our New Century strategic plan. “Certainly, the University has a lot going for it in terms of geography and our diverse community, and this exceptional new housing facility advances our commitment to diversity, sustainability, and excellence by maximizing those natural advantages,” Smart says.

His intense involvement over these past eight years—from white paper submission to the first student stepping into Lakeside Village’s sunlit atrium and walking up the winding orange staircase—has left a gratifying impression.

“I’ve developed tremendous respect for our architects, the project manager, the engineers, the hundreds of players who make a project like this work,” Smart says. “It’s a juggling game getting the most value out of the resources available—and you don’t get it all right ever—but I have been awed by what’s been accomplished here.

More information is available at miami.edu/newstudenthousing.