Facing a swelling student body, Loyola Marymount University is planning to build two student-housing buildings with more than 600 total beds on its campus in Westchester Bluffs.
The university hopes to start construction later this year on the four-story structures, which will house freshman and sophomore students, UrbanizeLA reported. The buildings will replace two existing one-story dormitories at 1 S. LMU Drive in Westchester.
The current buildings will be demolished in May, and the project is expected to be complete in the second half of 2020. It is funded by $90 million in “green bonds,” which LMU sold through the California Education Facilities Authority.
LMU’s newspaper, The Loyolan, reported that new dorms are needed for larger incoming classes. In August, the largest class in university history moved onto campus, according to the report. The university also started placing students in off-campus locations.
Architecture firm Steinberg Hart is designing the new dorms.
Other universities in Southern California are also working on housing solutions for increasing numbers of students. In the past year, developers announced a 16-story project for up to 462 students near UCLA; Southwestern Law restarted a 133-unit dorm project in Koreatown; a 128-unit project is set to rise near Cal State Northridge; and USC filed for a 79-unit building.
LMU also leases 50,000 square feet for its School of Film and Television at an office campus at 12105 and 12126 W. Waterfront Drive, which is now for sale. [Urbanize] – Gregory Cornfield