<p>There will be many changes in housing next year. Keeney, Wayland, Miller, Metcalf, Hope and Littlefield are not available for selection in the lottery for juniors and seniors. That takes away about 100 slots that had been available for upperclassmen last year. The article from the Herald said that Perkins would become singles (not sure if that will be for next year, though). It looks like the juniors are getting the pinch in this reconfiguration, but maybe there are some other changes that will balance it out?</p>
<p>Hope and Littlefield will be sophomore-only doubles. Metcalf and Miller are out, but 315 Thayer Street is opening with ~60 beds. I think more people were allowed off-campus, too.</p>
<p>Lastly, it’s unclear exactly what they are doing with Wayland, but ResLife’s office is vacating the first floor, and opening about 30 more beds. I’m guessing that that will go to summer assignment.</p>
<p>Perkins will be a freshman dorm next year.</p>
<p>I don’t think I knew a single junior who lived in Keeney, waylaid, hope, or little field (I’m sure there were some but my point is that “losing” these buildings doesn’t mean much). Hegeman and Caswell always had sophomore areas reserved which I’m assuming are no longer the case. I might be mistaken but I doubt rising juniors will even really notice the change.</p>
<p>I don’t think Hegeman was at any point in time sophomore-only, at least in recent years. I also don’t think there’s any indication that Caswell will stop being sophomore-only, and it’s all doubles anyway. I think rising juniors looking for singles will definitely feel the pinch, considering that buildings like Metcalf and Hope are single-heavy. I think this is why Res Life is opening up Grad D to be picked as single rooms instead of as suites, but this seems less than ideal. You are essentially sharing a suite with 5 strangers.</p>
<p>I know quite a few juniors, and some seniors living on “upper class row” in Keeney. Close to Wriston but actually quieter, and some huge singles. They will be missed. I don’t know how they will turn them into freshman doubles, or the too small for quads, ex-lounges being used for sophomore quads. Maybe the freshmen will get lounges back? That, at least, would be nice.</p>
<p>My guess is that groups of 5 (or the occasional 4/6) will continue to choose Grad D rooms as “suites.” It just adds flexibility for those seeking singles, but within a group of only a few people.</p>
<p>Singles Row in Keeney is nice, and it’s a shame it will be going away. I expect they’ll knock down the walls and turn most of them into doubles.</p>
<p>sorry for any confusion from my earlier post. I am an alumnus and was in a frat so my knowledge of the housing lottery both past and present is definitely sub par</p>
<p>According to Res Life, they are going to try to provide new singles for juniors. I just wonder where those will be? Do you know for sure that Perkins will be freshmen? I thought the plan was that all freshmen will be in Kenney and Pembroke. Did they give a lot more juniors permission to live off campus? It will be interesting to see how it all plays out.</p>
<p>I wonder with the increasing class sizes, whether there will be some people “forced” off campus to find apartments.</p>
<p>Think I just stumbled upon one of the likely plans (not for next year, but the year after. Ugly, not in keeping with the College Hill look building (looks very current, soon to look outdated look). If Gilbane is behind it, Brown will have trouble saying no. Will make Thayer street colder and less sunny, and more windtunnel. Bet only the rich kids will be able to afford it. Hope the neighbors get it defeated, or at least only 3 stories at most and more in style with older buildings, at least on the facade.
[Four-story</a> apartment building proposed near Brown University / Artist’s rendering | Breaking News | providencejournal.com | The Providence Journal](<a href=“http://news.providencejournal.com/breaking-news/2012/03/providence-ri---71.html]Four-story”>http://news.providencejournal.com/breaking-news/2012/03/providence-ri---71.html)</p>
<p>Class size increase? Racking the brain, trying to remember details about this.</p>
<p>As for that new building, it is supposed to house 277 students ([New</a> student apartments proposed for Thayer - News - The Brown Daily Herald - Serving the community daily since 1891](<a href=“http://www.browndailyherald.com/news/new-student-apartments-proposed-for-thayer-1.2716887?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_term=Brown_Daily&utm_campaign=Brown_Daily_2012319147#.T3Fjk-xSTuQ]New”>http://www.browndailyherald.com/news/new-student-apartments-proposed-for-thayer-1.2716887?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_term=Brown_Daily&utm_campaign=Brown_Daily_2012319147#.T3Fjk-xSTuQ)). That’s about 20% of the senior class. I find it hard to believe that 277 undergraduates would want to pay that much (1000-1400/month) for off-campus housing – about twice the cost of on-campus housing. </p>
<p>Comments on the ProJo article were interesting.</p>
<p>If the rent is $1000/month, and students are paying for nine months of the year, then it’s only $1000 more than it costs to live in a suite on campus. Personally, I have neither the money nor the interest in living in one of these luxury apartments, but I know people who would. But 277 of them? I’m not so sure. There are students who live at the luxury apartments downtown (Waterplace, the Westin), and I wonder whether they would prefer to live closer to campus if nicer housing were available, or whether they like the distance/proximity to downtown. I have no idea how many students live downtown.</p>
<p>So yes, there are people who would pay $1400/month for housing. But I’m not sure whether they would want to live in the Thayer complex.</p>
<p>I also think that such housing has the potential to be extremely divisive, more so than the suite-non suite breakdown already is. Entering the housing lottery is difficult enough as is, but it’s an even bigger issue when half the group can afford to live in New Dorm and the other half can’t. As an RPL, I’ve seen a lot of students freak out about upsetting their friends vs. getting the amenities they want. These more exorbitant prices mean even more students will not be able to live there, and the gap between the haves and have-nots grows.</p>
<p>tl;dr: this is a bad idea.</p>
<p>Students would not be paying that rent for 9 months, but for a year. Summer sublets most of the time are for a discount, particularly if the rent is high, and you would have to expect that would not be able to “fill” all those units in the summer. So rent might be more like $1600 a month in the end, and plus utilities? Agree that this would contribute to “haves and have nots”, as well as being ugly!</p>
<p>That’s a crazy rent. A normal house with friends on College Hill is going for about $650-750 a month, depending on how close it is to campus and whether utilities are included. I’m definitely not a fan of these big ugly apartments.</p>
<p>Sounds like a bunch of Brown students need to meet (again) with Mr. Gilbane and correct his previous assumptions.
Next years room charge for Brown is $6974. That works out to $581/month if you had a 12 month lease. (yet to see an apt that lets you just lease end of Aug to end of May.) Even if you allow for dividing into only 9 months (assuming you get a full price summer sublet, HaHaHa ) That allows $774/month. and that includes all utilities. A parent paying for the cheapest of his proposed units would be paying $12000 a year. Almost Double the dorm cost. I hope if he builds this, he actually ends up with a bunch of unrented units!</p>
<p>My daughter’s rent, not including utilities, was $530/month when she lived off campus, and she had friends with even cheaper rent. Even when utilities were included, her annual cost came in at a little less than 9 months of Brown housing (she found a subletter for the summer, but at less than what she was paying).</p>
<p>My daughter, too, paid in the $500 range, like fireandrain’s, for each of the two years she lived off campus. And there were plenty of available and wonderful apartments at this rate. You can just look at Craig’s list for examples, which is how kids find apartments many times. This apartment building sounds like it’s way way way too high for the market.</p>
<p>Silly question, but do the Gilbane apartments have kitchens? I don’t see any reference to a kitchen - just a bedroom, living room, and bathroom. If not, they will really be just glorified dorm rooms, which may not appeal to some. Because this is a private property and not part of university housing, I suppose they will draw from a wider range of tenants - certainly not just seniors, but grad students and possibly visiting faculty and such. Even without cooking facilities, Gilbane will have no problem filling the rooms - although there are many rentals in the area, most of them are run down and lack amenities.</p>
<p>Also, did it indicate that it would be closed to non-University affiliated people? If not, that could pose some concerns too.</p>
<p>Not to trample on everyone’s anti-corporate viciousness (I kid, I kid), but I think the quoted rents were per-apartment, not per-resident. $1000 for a two-bedroom would be well within normal range. Utilities are also included. So… actually kinda sounds like a good deal to me.</p>