South Lake Village opens its doors
Apartment-style complex is third phase in long-term residential housing plan

By SUE WUETCHER
Reporter Editor

South Lake Village, the third phase in a long-term plan to provide housing for students and improve their quality of life, opened Aug. 15 with a ceremony at the complex on the North Campus.

The second apartment-style housing complex to be built on the North Campus, South Lake Village features nine two-story buildings and seven three-story buildings with a capacity to house 552 students in studio, one-, two- and four-bedroom apartments. The complex is located on the south shore of Lake LaSalle, considered to be one of the most scenic spots on campus.

Each fully furnished unit features a full kitchen with all appliances, including a dishwasher. Other amenities include central air conditioning, laundry facilities, access to a community building, connections to the university's telephone and computing systems, and ample parking.

It will be fully occupied with a mix of graduate and undergraduate residents when the Fall semester gets under way Monday.

South Lake Village is another step toward UB's goal of "turning the (North) campus into what it was intended to be-a residential campus, where students not only work but where they live," said President William R. Greiner.

The project, which cost $22.9 million, is sponsored by the UB Foundation, Inc., and the UB Alumni Association. It was designed by Foit-Albert Associates of Buffalo and built by ADF Construction Corp. of Amherst.

The public land on the North Campus was made available for private housing development due to a clause in state education law that allows SUNY trustees to work with alumni associations to develop housing on SUNY campuses.

Greiner called South Lake Village an "extraordinary partnership of the public and private sector," emphasizing that the project was financed entirely with private money.

Dennis Black, vice president for student affairs, echoed the partnership concept in his opening remarks.

Noting that an eight-person rowing shell-once used by one of UB's rowing teams-hangs from the ceiling of the South Lake Village community building as part of the project's waterfront theme, Black recalled a recent conversation he had with a crew coach that focused on the keys to rowing success.

"The success of South Lake Village is based on these same key factors," he said:
• A good "vehicle-state education law and the powers of the SUNY trustees to make land leases"
• "Teamwork-the coordinated and enthusiastic efforts" of the UB Foundation, Alumni Association, Amherst Industrial Development Agency, "many on this campus and in Albany, and the talent of the architect and dedication of the contractor"
• "Training"-building on the success of previous UB housing construction projects
• "Spirit-the ongoing student interest and excitement in these projects"
• "Good coaching-a campus leader committed to improving the quality of campus life.

"But on the water, when rowing for your school, or on the waterfront when creating a school residential community, what really leads to success is everyone pulling together," Black stressed.

The opening of South Lake Village marks the third phase of the university's long-term student-housing plan. The first phase of the plan was completed in Fall 1998 with the opening of Flickinger Court, townhouses for 230 graduate and professional students located at Chestnut Ridge and Sweet Home roads, adjacent to the North Campus.

The second phase was completed in Fall 1999 with the opening of Hadley Village, the first new student housing built on the UB campus in 25 years and the university's first apartment-style housing for undergraduates.

The university broke ground on the fourth phase-Gateway Village-two weeks ago at a site at Flint and Augspurger roads, adjacent to the old UB stadium. (See related story.)

UB's residential housing plan also includes the conversion of the traditional dormitory-style rooms in Goodyear Hall into two-bedroom apartments, as well as a full upgrade of Clement Hall, maintaining the building as a traditional dormitory. Both residence halls are located on the South Campus. Work on both buildings is expected to be completed by 2004.

Also in the works is a plan to develop the area between The Commons, the University Bookstore, the Student Union and the Ellicott Complex on the North Campus-dubbed the Parcel B-Lee Loop area. The site could include not only student housing, but also university-related and retail services as well, Black said.

The university will begin a master-planning process next month, holding public consultation and stakeholder meetings in an effort to determine exactly what type of development should be located at the site, he said.

Also speaking at the ceremony opening South Lake Village were Randall Benderson, a UB Foundation trustee representing the foundation's Properties and Finance committees; Donald Roberts, past president of the UB Alumni Association; Jeffrey Goettel, vice president of the Residence Hall Association; Beverly Foit-Albert, president of Foit-Albert Associates; Samuel Savarino of ADF Construction Corp., and James Allen, executive director of the Amherst Industrial Development Agency.