The University of Pittsburgh’s record-setting growth is reshaping both its campus and Oakland, as the university leans into a long-term expansion plan that adds student beds, new facilities and economic heft to one of Pennsylvania’s busiest urban districts.

Demand for a Pitt education has surged, with the university reporting its largest-ever first-year class for fall 2025 and a record number of applications as it moves toward a goal of enrolling 22,000 undergraduates on the Pittsburgh campus by 2028.

Housing sits at the center of that strategy. Pitt’s Board of Trustees has approved a new first-year residence hall at Fifth and Ruskin avenues, an L‑shaped building that will replace a surface parking lot and add roughly 450 beds along with retail dining, study areas and spaces that can flex for living-learning communities and faculty-in-residence programs. Designed to meet LEED Gold standards, the hall will incorporate bike storage, stormwater collection and higher energy and water performance as part of the university’s carbon neutrality goals.

To meet near-term demand, Pitt is also leaning on “affiliate” housing, using block leases at nearby properties such as the Bridge on Forbes, Wellington Apartments and Pennsylvania Apartments, after previously partnering with Carlow University residence halls and local hotels during the pandemic.

Longer term, Pitt’s Campus Master Plan lays out a vision for adding beds and reshaping core campus facilities, including a proposal to convert the upper floors of the William Pitt Union back to their original residential use while moving student-union functions into the historic Pittsburgh Athletic Association building across Fifth Avenue. Those moves unfold in the heart of the Pittsburgh Innovation District, where Oakland’s mix of universities, hospitals and startups is driving new construction and intensifying competition for space around campus.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: University of Pittsburgh expansion-new dorms, housing plans in Oakland