Student housing enhances Lake Campus

DAVE MOSIER/independent editor

CELINA — For years, officials of Wright State University and the Western Ohio Educational Foundation (WOEF) have worked on a plan to provide a full college experience to students who attend Wright State’s Lake Campus west of Celina. The addition of four-year degree programs, including one in mechanical engineering debuting this year, as well as an MBA program, has enhanced the Lake Campus educationally. Now, the final piece of the puzzle — on-campus student housing — is also nearing fruition.

“I think the people here in the county see this as making it a real college campus,” said Dan Bertsos, director of housing services for Wright State and the person overseeing the project. “Even though they already have a real college campus, housing kind of rounds it out.”

Bertsos said student housing has been a topic of discussion at the Lake Campus for a decade, with former deans Dan Evans and Jim Sayers very interested in building student housing at the campus (click here for more information on the project).

In fact, Bertsos said Sayers, an old friend from Wright State’s Dayton campus, was probably only half joking when he “ordered” him to come down to the Lake Campus to start the process of getting housing built in Celina a few years ago.

But even with all the interest from university officials, the partnership of two key players, the WOEF Board and People’s Bank in Celina, is what is making the housing project possible, he noted.

Bertsos said that, up until this project, there were basically two options for building student housing and other college facility projects:

• The sale of revenue bonds, with revenues from student housing fees used to pay off the bonds
• Private developers, which built housing with their own funds and then took most of the revenues for the first 25-30 years before giving the buildings to the university.

Financing for the Lake Campus housing project is a new model, Bertsos added, in that a foundation is handling the financing and will then “own” the buildings. The benefits of this financing option is that the foundation takes all the risks of financing and then returns the profits to the Lake Campus in the form of student financial aid.

“It’s a great opportunity,” Bertsos said, adding that the financing model is similar to using a private developer, but with one big difference — the money stays in the community and helps more students go to school.

“The Foundation shoulders all the risk and the money all comes back as scholarships,” he noted.

In addition, because of a great financing deal from People’s Bank, Bertsos said, the WOEF board will be able to pay off the loan quicker and help more students in the future.

It’s a partnership that should only get batter, Bertsos added, noting that other area financial institutions are interested in providing financing for any future housing projects.

The first phase of the project will provide apartments for 32 students and is one of eight housing buildings providing apartments for 200 students included in the master plan for the Lake Campus. The housing services director said it’s too soon to tell just how many of those units would eventually be built.

Designed as townhouse-style, each apartment will have 4-5 individual bedrooms, a living room, full kitchen, washer/dryer, two bathrooms, and the first building will have a lakeside view. The apartments will be furnished with chairs, a couch, end tables, beds, and desks. H.A. Dorsten, Inc., of Minster is the contractor for the project.

A groundbreaking ceremony was held January 24 for the project, but Bertsos said damage from a storm earlier in the year has delayed completion of the first phase until October. He added, though, that half of the apartments have already been leased by future students who come from as far away as Cleveland and Toledo.

The only resident so far, though, is a cat who wandered into the building, which is currently under construction. “Students want to call him Laker, for the Lake Campus athletic mascot,” Bertsos said.

On-campus housing offers many benefits over off-campus housing, Bertsos said. Benefits include:

• An option for a 9- or 12-month lease without penalty or additional fee
• No damage deposit, just a pre-payment on the first term rent
• Apartments are fully furnished, including all kitchen appliances
• All utilities, cable television, high-speed Internet (wired and wireless), and local telephone service are included in the rent, ready to use when students move in
• Single bedrooms or shared bedrooms can be rented as a substantial discount
• Live-in staff available 24/7 year-round.
• Full access to the Lake Campus’ new dining commons.

Bertsos also added that students living in the new apartments would also have a spectacular view of sunsets over Grand Lake St. Marys from windows and patios at the rear of the new housing, while the savings for a student having to walk just five minutes to classes, versus having to commute 30 miles, would be approximately $1,700 in gasoline costs and at least 160 hours driving time during the academic year.

In addition to the advantages to students, Bertsos also noted there would be opportunities for residential summer camps and conferences for local businesses and other groups that want to take advantage of the educational resources and other facilities on campus.

Wright State President David Hopkins also has commended the WOEF Board and People’s Bank for their contributions to the project, adding that he feels the addition of student housing will further enhance the growth of the Lake Campus, the fastest-growing regional campus in the state for the past three years.

The project also comes on the heels of a $9 million expansion/renovation project completed earlier this year.