Group plans $11M student housing

complex in West Campus

Austin Business Journal - 4:51 PM CDT Friday

A group that offers affordable housing for students plans to spend $10.9 million to demolish one of its properties in West Campus and replace it with a seven-story residential building that will triple capacity.

College Houses Inc., a 501c3 organization with six co-op residential properties surrounding the University of Texas campus, plans to break ground in May 2007 on the project. It will expand the bed count in their property at 1905 and 1907 Nueces St. from 45 to 160. The building will have six stories of residential units and ground-level space for the group's offices. The Staubach Co. is handling development of the project, which is expected to be complete in fall 2008.

In September 2003 the Austin City Council passed the University Neighborhood Overlay that allowed for denser residential development in the areas surrounding the UT Campus. Alan Robinson, general administrator with College Houses Inc., says the overlay opened the door for the group to expand its offerings without buying additional land.

Robinson says the group may sell one of its existing properties at 2222 Pearl St. to help finance the project. The bulk of the funding, he says, will be borrowed.

The co-op launched in 1965 and currently has 445 students from UT, Austin Community College and St. Edward's University living among its properties. Residents in each house contribute four hours of work each week, from cooking to cleaning, in order to help keep operating costs down and ensure rent stays affordable.

Robinson says many of the residential projects being built in West Campus are on the high end of the market.

"Right now there just isn't enough affordable student housing in West Campus which is why we want to increase our presence," he says.