Large orange barricades and a fence surround University Drive from the outer edge of Taylor House\u00a0 to Lamberton Hall. The fence marks the start of construction on the new 371-bed East Hill Residence Hall, scheduled to open for students in fall 2028.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Clad in helmets and holding shovels, representatives from across Lehigh including Chris Cook, senior vice president for finance and administration, Joe Kloeck, senior director of Planning, Design and Construction, \u201898, Provost Nathan Urban, Board of Trustees members, and representatives from the architectural firm DigSau and the construction firm Boyle, posed for pictures at a groundbreaking event for East Hill on Oct. 16.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Kloeck said the construction team is working on site controls this week, and tree clearing will likely begin in the next two weeks, followed by site grading and excavation. Kloeck said the fence around University Drive will be up until the construction finishes.\u00a0<\/p>\n
East Hill will sit between Drinker and McClintic-Marshall residence halls, where a forested area and a basketball court currently lie. A path through the patch of woods currently connects the first-year residence halls to each other.\u00a0<\/p>\n
According to Klocek, there will be more trees replaced than the number cut down during construction.<\/p>\n
Klocek said East Hill will consist of four connected buildings at different heights adjusted to the steepness of the hill, and will feature a gym, common area kitchens, common lounge,meeting spaces and a mix of single and double rooms.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Cook said East Hill is part of Lehigh\u2019s strategic plan to adapt to higher enrollment in coming years.\u00a0<\/p>\n
There are 1,608 first-year students enrolled at Lehigh this year, making up the largest first-year class ever. The record enrollment prompted a need<\/a> for 82 first-years to live in typically upperclassmen housing in Singleton, Hitch and Maida, and Brodhead.<\/p>\n Cook said the university determined they\u2019d need around 320 more beds for first-year students to accommodate future enrollment increases by the time the building is complete., This estimate drove the planning behind building East Hill, a project Lehigh is using debt to finance.<\/p>\n Cook said the additional 50 or so beds in the 371-bed residence hall will allow for students to live in East Hill while older residence halls are renovated.<\/p>\n The residence hall construction also includes making University Drive a two-way road, complete with a sidewalk, lights and signage.\u00a0<\/p>\n Klocek said the changes to University Drive are part of a decades-long initiative at Lehigh to move traffic out of central campus and make the campus more pedestrian friendly. The road will still be open to emergency vehicles during construction, Klocek said.<\/p>\n The addition of a sidewalk is especially necessary, as many students live in this area, and are walking to and from classes.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve been lucky, as far as I know, with nobody being injured or any of that, but I\u2019m sure there\u2019s close calls all the time, just because of how many people are up in that area walking down from the residence halls, the University Center and beyond,\u201d Klocek said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Klocek said the construction work is scheduled to take place between 7 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, with louder noises not expected before 7:30 a.m.\u00a0<\/p>\n Klocek said this year, the site will be excavated primarily near the intersection of University Drive and Taylor Street for an underground basin, and the foundation for the building will be laid. He said additional excavation will be minimal because East Hill is being built up the hill, and the bulk of building construction will start\u00a0 in late spring 2027.<\/p>\n \u201cThis will definitely be something people notice when they come back next fall,\u201d said Ryan Rose, associate vice president for facilities and campus planning.<\/p>\n Design decisions for East Hill\u00a0<\/p>\n To decide where the new residence hall should go, Klocek said the facilities team leaned on Lehigh\u2019s master planning consultants, who identified the forested spot as ideally situated between other first-year housing, fostering a sense of community for the residents.\u00a0<\/p>\n Klocek said the university then solicited proposals from designers. Klocek said they looked for design ideas\u00a0 with elements of the strategic plan, including LEED certification<\/a> and Lehigh\u2019s Sustainability Strategic Plan 2030<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n