Currently, it’s hard for Lipscomb students to see beyond the chain link fences and road blocks that signify the closing of yet another parking area on campus.
However, by fall 2017, the lot behind the Village will offer more than just parking spaces to upperclassmen with the opening of a brand new residence hall.
While the building does not yet have a name, Sam Smith, Dean of Student Life, said Lipscomb has big plans for the new structure.
“The best way to help students understand the design of the new building is to ask them to think of the Hampton Inn,” Smith said. “The new building will be a beautiful living space that will promote community through its design.”
Smith has spent the last couple of years visiting 20 other college campuses from California to Massachusetts, looking at a variety of dorm options. He said he hopes with his research that Lipscomb can provide students with the best space to live.
“There will be around 174 beds in the new residence hall, and each hall will have a mix of community areas for the residents to interact with each other and build relationships,” Smith said. “The lower level will include office space, a full kitchen, a classroom and a beautiful courtyard.”
While not a co-ed dorm — keeping with Lipscomb’s standards — the new hall will have a flexible building design to allow both males and females to live in different wings.
Smith said he and other staff members hope to name the structure in the coming months. Options include: the name of a historical figure from Lipscomb’s past, an individual who has made a more recent impact or the location of the new building on campus.
In the meantime, as construction workers break ground, parking for students and staff will be limited and less convenient.
Smith shared that starting in October, a new parking lot will open on the north side of campus with an additional 150 spaces. Until then, commuters can park at Woodmont Hills Church and utilize the shuttle service or park at Stokes Elementary to walk to campus.
“I’ve been very encouraged by the determination our students have exhibited so far in cooperating with this project and their enthusiasm for the future,” Smith said. “I hope this new building will open opportunities for more graduate students, married students and even faculty to live on campus.”