By Austin Turner
San Jose State is in the “early-to-mid-level planning” stages of constructing the Campus Village 3 residence hall on campus said Vice President of Student Affairs Patrick Day.
Day said the new dorm will contain “up to 1,000 beds” and that the university is shooting for a Fall 2023 semester opening.
CV3 will be a “mixed-use building” with a modernized Dining Commons likely attached to the complex.
“We’re going to have to replace the dining commons,” Day said. “I think anyone who’s been there knows why. It’s just dated.”
Some students on campus agreed with Day, requesting a change in the Dining Commons, especially regarding the food.
“We need more options,” said economics freshman Jiahao Deng. “It’s always the same few things.”
The building will “not be a two-story or three-story building,” but will likely be a high-rise, Day said. He added that it probably will not be as tall as CV2.
Some students said they would like CV3 to follow the “suite-style” of the Campus Village C dorm.
“[CVC has] living rooms and kitchens,” said Nien Li, an undeclared freshman. “It’s more like a family setting . . . I would prefer [a new dorm building] to be like CVC.”
University officials have yet to decide on an exact location for the building, but Day said he would like to keep it near the existing
dorms in order to maintain the
“village concept.” He acknowledged that it’s still an option to knock down the current Dining Commons or other buildings such as Washburn Hall.
“We’re trying to figure out what that footprint is actually going to look like,” Day said.
As for the demographic footprint, a recent university news release stated that the dorm will “target ongoing demand among undergraduate and transfer students.”
It’s still unknown at this point whether SJSU will give graduate students an opportunity to live in CV3.
“We’re not taking anybody off the table yet,” Day said. “But we’re going to have to explore off-campus options, potentially some partnership
arrangements . . . But we may indeed have graduate students in the building. We’re not just saying it’s just for undergraduates. Absolutely not.”
Day went on to say that CV3 will primarily focus on students, rather than faculty members and staff.
The university’s recent acquisition of the Alfred E. Alquist Building and planned redevelopment will serve as the hub for non-student SJSU employees in need of housing, according to a SJSU press release.
“The Alquist is really designed to try to serve more of the faculty [members] and staff as a property to support their needs,” Day said.
CV3 will also provide emergency housing for students suffering from homelessness or other housing insecurities.
At some point in the Fall 2020 semester, SJSU will run a pilot program for emergency housing solutions.
According to an SJSU news release, the school will provide “12 or more beds” for emergency housing purposes.
After this semester, the university will assess the demand for the beds and use that data to determine the amount of emergency housing needed in CV3.
“As we look at the financial planning for the building, we’re going to really think about, based upon history, how many beds do we need to have available,” Day said.
