NC State broke ground last week for student housing on Centennial Campus.

Centennial Campus Apartments, scheduled to open in fall 2013, will provide housing for upper-division students and loft-style apartments for graduate students.

The $129 million, 550,446 square-foot facility across from the Hunt Library will feature an on-site bookstore and dining options, a state-of-the-art fitness room and Entrepreneurial Village, a university living and learning community.

“When I think about this project, it brings to life the true vision of Centennial Campus-to be a true living and learning community, and a community of scholars,” said Chancellor Randy Woodson. “We’re very, very excited about the scope of this project, and when you combine it with the Hunt Library, we’ve invested over $240 million in space that will truly be transformative in the lives of our students.”

The project grew out of a 2002 task force on living and learning, which recommended student housing on Centennial Campus.

“We’ve been waiting for this day a long time,” said Tim Luckadoo, associate vice chancellor of Student Affairs. “This is a project that has taken years to develop and come up with a concept that would create a hub of activity for this campus.”

About $9 million of the project is devoted to dining facilities that will serve students, staff, partners and visitors, Luckadoo said.

Once completed, the project, which adds about 1,200 beds, will bring the total number of students living on campus to more than 10,000.

View the original article – News Staff