TCU’s $500M Campus Buildout Pushes Student Housing

Texas Christian University is laying out the next phase of a sweeping campus expansion in Fort Worth, as cranes multiply across its 302 acres and developers push forward on thousands of new student housing beds.

The private university is in the midst of a $500 million expansion announced in April, part of a broader 35-project master plan approved by its board of trustees last year, the Dallas Business Journal reported.

The initiative includes new student housing, retail, academic renovations and an athletics district. University officials say housing is driving much of the visible construction activity, with multiple projects underway to increase on-campus capacity and keep students closer to school life.

Austin-based American Campus Communities is the anchor housing partner, developing roughly 2,500 beds across 11 buildings at four sites on campus. Construction is expected to wrap in summer 2027, a timeline that aligns with TCU’s long-term bet on enrollment growth. Renovation work has also begun on the Market Square dining hall inside the Lupton University Union, a 15-year-old facility, with renovations slated for completion in fall 2026.

More is coming. The university remains in active design for a renovation of Ed Landreth Hall, home to TCU’s music and theater programs, with construction slated for a 2026 through 2028 timeline. Officials also told the outlet that they are studying chilled water and electrical capacity upgrades to support future development, along with feasibility studies for expanded recreation and athletics facilities.

One of the most prominent mixed-use projects tied to the expansion is Morado on Berry, rising along Berry Street at the campus’ southern edge. Developed by Austin-based Endeavor Real Estate Group in partnership with TCU, the project will complete 780 luxury apartment-style beds for graduate students, a 950-space parking garage and 25,000 square feet of street-level retail. Plans include modern units, study lounges and a rooftop pool outfitted with a game day jumbotron. The project is expected to go vertical in December.

Endeavor says the development targets a gap in TCU’s housing stock. While the area around campus is dense with smaller off-campus rentals, higher-end options for upperclassmen and graduate students have been limited. The retail mix is expected to skew heavily toward food-and-beverage tenants, adding another commercial node to Berry Street.

— Eric Weilbacher