UT to add 576 beds with new graduate student housing complex, boost housing scholarships

The University of Texas will move forward with a graduate student housing project that will bring 576 beds along with entertainment, dining and grocery options. The UT System Board of Regents on Thursday approved the university's proposal to build the project at 1900 Comal St.

The new development is the second phase of the university's plan to expand graduate student housing, UT President Jay Hartzell told the American-Statesman on Thursday. The new complex will be built near another new graduate student housing project UT plans to open in the fall with about 780 beds.

It will also be near UT's athletic facilities and will have five new beach volleyball courts, which will allow the UT women's team to host NCAA competitions.

The project is part of the university's commitment to establishing "high-quality affordable housing" and a strong sense of community for graduate students, which will help UT attract top talent, Hartzell said.

"When I got the job in 2020, this was on the drawing board," Hartzell said. "As a person who went to graduate school at UT, I get the need. And as the city's gotten more expensive, this is just one more thing we're trying to do to ensure students choose us."

Jim Davis, UT chief operating officer, said costs for the new graduate complex are still being estimated, and it is expected to open in 2027.

The new development will feature about 9,000 square feet of retail space and 3,000 square feet for dining, which will help support the athletic and East Campus communities, a university spokesperson said. With the latest project, UT will have about 2,250 graduate student beds available in three complexes.

The spokesperson said rental costs for the Phase Two housing units have not yet been determined but are expected to be at or below market value.

Davis said the two residential complexes are the university's first new graduate student housing projects in about 40 years.

What else is UT doing for student housing?

The university is also continuing its housing scholarship program in the upcoming school year after launching the program this year to help low- and middle-income students with on-campus housing costs. UT spent about $5 million to subsidize housing costs for about 3,200 on-campus students who qualified for UT's tuition assistance program, Texas Advance Commitment.

The university is increasing its investment in the program to $7.5 million to account for price increases and to serve more students, Hartzell said. Texas Advance Commitment 1 students can receive $1,800 to $2,300, and Texas Advance Commitment 2 students (those with higher family income levels) can receive $900 to $1,400.

In February, regents gave UT permission to begin negotiations to start building an estimated $145 million, 1,000-bed undergraduate student housing complex in place of the Whitis Court residence hall, which has about 200 beds. This will be the first newly built undergraduate housing complex since 2007, though the university purchased Dobie Twenty21 with a capacity of almost 1,000 student residents in 2021.

With the new undergraduate and two new graduate student complexes, UT is on a path to add about 2,000 beds by 2027.

What does the UT System board's action mean?

The board's decision Thursday authorizes UT to enter into a private-public partnership agreement — the same process the two other new complexes underwent. The university will enter into a lease agreement with the 2033 Higher Education Development Foundation, a nonprofit that advises the university on real estate matters, that will then contract with a private developer for the property.

The regents also authorized the university to use the UT System's Revenue Financing System, which also is financing the undergraduate complex project.

Site permitting and design will start this summer. The design will be similar to the East Campus Graduate Apartments, Davis said.

Hartzell thanked the board for its approval of the project and said he hopes UT's increase of housing supply — with the new beds and scholarship support — will help students tackle rising living costs and choose to enroll at UT.

"It really pertains to this goal of trying to find more high-quality, affordable housing for our graduate students," Hartzell said. "And build a sense of community that has vibrancy to it."

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: University of Texas to build more student housing, offer scholarships