AMHERST — A long-range, phased plan to modernize housing on the University of Massachusetts campus, including building new dormitories before others are replaced or renovated, will be undertaken through collaboration with American Campus Communities.
UMass officials announced Thursday that they have selected a development team led by the Austin, Texas-based student housing developer, with an aim of working toward developing options for contemporary undergraduate, graduate and non-student housing that preserves affordability, while adding community amenities.
The expectation is that during this work there will be no loss of current student housing capacity, but that this will improve student life while engaging the community and addressing campus infrastructure needs. Currently, about 80% of residence halls at UMass opened before 1971.
“We are excited for our community to begin working with our new partners on envisioning the near-, mid- and long-term future of the flagship campus,” UMass Chancellor Javier A. Reyes said in a statement. “By focusing on how residential communities interact with and enhance academic, cultural and recreational spaces, and aligning private partnership with investments in academic, research and athletic facilities, we can design a cohesive campus that maintains affordability, achieves sustainability goals and promotes community wellbeing.”
In January 2025, Reyes announced that he would be seeking a new public-private partnership that could bring to the Amherst campus affordable, mixed-use housing for undergraduate and graduate students, as well as possible options for non-students. This initiative also aims to reduce pressure on the area’s housing stock.
The Amherst campus had its first foray into a public-private partnership with the development of Fieldstone, which opened in the fall of 2023 in former parking lots on Massachusetts Avenue. Located across from the Whitmore Administration building, the $200 million project developed by Axium Infrastructure of New York City and Balfour Beatty Campus Solutions of Philadelphia has 623 beds for undergraduate students and a separate area with 200 beds for graduate students.
American Campus Communities is the nation’s largest developer, owner and manager of high-quality student housing opportunities. After initiating a request for proposals through the building authority last year, the campus worked with real estate advisory firm Newmark to manage the request for proposal process and selected the company from a large pool of responses. The development team also includes Elkus Manfredi Architects and Suffolk Construction.
The choice of American Campus Communities initiates a strategic planning process that will focus on both the Amherst campus and the Charles River Campus in Newton. Beginning this summer and fall, and throughout the multi-phase design and development process, the university and the developer will provide opportunities for input from students, faculty, governance groups and others involved with the campus.
After that, there will be opportunities for broader campus community input at the start of the fall semester.
Any projects that emerge will require approval through the university’s multi-step approval process, including the board for the building authority, and the UMass Board of Trustees.
Currently, more than 60% of students live in 51 residence halls and apartment buildings on campus. Of the 209 ranked public universities, UMass states that it is among the top five in the country for percentage of on-campus students.
“First-class facilities are needed to match the first-class quality and caliber of our students, faculty, staff and operations,” Andy Mangels, vice chancellor for administration and finance, said in a statement. “This project will position UMass Amherst to continue to attract top talent through a phased campus development that emphasizes creativity and affordability.”
Reyes told the Faculty Senate Thursday that affordability is being prioritized in what he anticipates will be a 10- to 15-year timeline to overhaul both the residential and academic areas of campus. He said the initial focus of the work will be to identify a place on the campus where a new dormitory can be constructed, and that no buildings would be taken off line until this project is complete.
“We can’t do without one bed on this campus,” Reyes said.
The strategic planning process is informed by recent student housing market analyses, including student surveys and focus groups, and aligns with the Healey-Driscoll administration’s statewide housing priorities. This effort, though, is separate from the BRIGHT Act, which is navigating the state Legislature and authorizes capital expenditures intended to upgrade campus infrastructure and decarbonization efforts.
The announcement comes after a petition from Amherst residents was sent to Reyes and the Student Government Association, asking for UMass to commit to a plan to house significantly more students on campus, and for Amherst leaders to prioritize new and existing housing developments for families and seniors, low-income and workforce residents, and not students.
“We call on the university to act now, building on-campus dormitories that reflect its values of stewardship, responsibility and service to the common good,” the petition reads.
Reyes responded to the petition, referencing the critical need for housing across Massachusetts and the hope UMass can find a willing private partner. “UMass has been, and will continue to be, committed to being part of the solution,” Reyes wrote.
Meanwhile, members of the Student Government Association addressed the Town Council in late April, making the case that they would like to be partners in finding ways to increase the housing supply in town, including affordable housing.
Joshua Gatto, secretary of external affairs, said the idea would be to have more collaboration between the town and student leadership, and to find common ground on housing issues.
SGA Senator Jessica Valatka said student leaders would like to be active participants to ensure people can find housing.
“We are increasingly eager to listen to the concerns of the town of Amherst, to better understand the struggles residents have been facing and will be facing beyond our time here,” Valatka said.
One concern, for some students, remains the town bylaw that prohibits more than four unrelated housemates living in one dwelling, said SGA Senator Charlotte Ribe.
“We do think that it is vital to clearly communicate where many students feel this ordinance is falling short of what it set out to do,” Ribe said.
Other students who spoke were Charles Walker-Hoover, a senior at UMass, who said he wants to know how the SGA can assist the town with its needs, pointing to an SGA resolution he sponsored to increase fire staffing; Cass Melo, head of academics for SGA, who said students can assist in various issues through a reciprocal relationship, from transportation to academic partnerships and internships; and Michael Borowski, another SGA member who thanked councilors for their work toward solutions.
