Students who want to live near campus will soon have another option for housing. A new apartment complex, University Lofts, is currently under construction and is expected to be completed and open before January 2019. The apartments are being developed by the University of Indianapolis and Strategic Capital Partners.
This is the second student housing project SCP has worked on with UIndy. The first was the Greyhound Village apartments in 2016, according to SCP. When the construction is finished the building will have 118 units, with 300 beds, according to the SCP.
Although the apartments are being built by the University, they will still be considered off-campus housing, according to University President Robert Manuel. Their location will also give students quick access to IndyGo’s planned rapid-transit Red Line which is expected to begin operations in 2019, Manuel said.
An official ceremony for the construction of the apartments took place on April 10 at the building site, located at 1340 National Avenue on the North side of UIndy’s campus. The ceremony had remarks from Manuel, Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett, Secretary of the University Board of Trustees Rob Terry and SCP Senior Vice President for Construction and Development Will Zink.
According to Manuel, the project is expected to cost around $20.5 million and is an important part of the university’s Vision 2030 strategic plan. Vision 2030 is the blueprint for UIndy’s plans to develop the campus and surrounding area by investing more than $50 million for capital investments, according to Manuel.
“University Lofts is an important part of our University’s strategic plan to enhance the student experience and elevate the quality of life for our neighbors in the surrounding neighborhoods,” Manuel said at the ceremony. “[The development] radiates a wave of positive impacts by extending our reach to deliver important city [Indianapolis] needs with programs and facilities.”
Both Manuel and Hogsett said that the project will help improve the quality of life for the community and UIndy students. They also agreed that it would allow for UIndy to have a deeper connection to the city of Indianapolis.
“University Lofts…provides an ideal space for our city’s students to live, learn and grow together,” Hogsett said. “Thanks to the visionary efforts underway at University of Indianapolis and in the surrounding area, our city will continue to thrive for generations to come.”
Zink said that SCP was proud to be working with UIndy on the development of more student housing, saying that it would lead to a “renaissance” on the South side of Indianapolis.
“With University Lofts, Greyhound Village apartments and the many other creative developments near campus, these [developments] will make the South side a major destination,” Zink said.
“University Lofts… provides an ideal space for our city’s students to live, learn and grow…”
Sophomore religion major and incoming Indianapolis Student Government president Jamarcus Walker said that, as a student who lives four hours away, University Lofts would give him, and other students who live far away, a place to say year-round when he cannot go home for breaks or holidays.
Walker also said that he thought that University Lofts would provide more connections for those who currently live on campus or would want to live near campus and would have a positive impact on campus life.
“When students are closer to campus, they are more involved with activities [on campus],” Walker said. “…Having that accessibility to campus will create a lot more interaction between students and the university, but also giving that ability to be off-campus and not worry about what is going on [on campus].”
