UNC Charlotte has been on something of a building spree for several years now. That trend will continue with the approval of some renovations and another new dorm.
UNC Charlotte is one of the fastest growing schools in the UNC system and that has meant a lot of construction. John Bland with the university has seen brick buildings sprout up around campus.
“In the eight plus years that I’ve been here, I think we’ve built more than fifty structures including parking decks, as well as new academic buildings, and other facilities,” says Bland.
This week the governor signed a bill that allows the university to spend $129 million to upgrade roads, telephone lines and Wi-Fi. But most of the money will go toward renovating a few dorms and adding a new one that will house 400 students starting in 2016. If construction stays on track, it will be UNC Charlotte’s fourth new dorm to open in three years.
“We expect to have, over the next five or ten years, up to 7,000 students living on campus. So we’re building the means to allow them to be able to live on campus,” says Bland.
That’s part of the plan to transform UNC Charlotte into a traditional college campus or what Bland calls a complete campus experience with nice dorms and a football team.
But that comes with a cost. Students will have to pay an extra $50 in fees beginning this fall to help finance the latest construction.
