Florida Atlantic University is designing a new seven-story residence hall for the Boca Raton campus and plans to start construction during the spring 2025 semester, according to Brian Fisher, the associate vice president of operations in the Division of Student Affairs.

The new dorm building will be located west of the University Village Apartments (UVA) on the empty grass lot across the street, Fisher wrote in an email to the University Press. He said the residence hall, which is currently unnamed, will have 674 beds.

FAU spokesperson Joshua Glanzer told the UP in May that the university expects to have a new residence hall completed by fall 2026. Glanzer confirmed on Sept. 30 that he was referring to the dorm beginning construction in the spring.

As listed under current projects on the FAU Boca Raton Campus Master Plan, the dorm will be designated for upperclassmen. However, Fisher notes that while all FAU students are eligible to apply for this residence hall, the “primary audience” will mostly be sophomores.

The master plan is a “living document which is reviewed and updated every five years,” Fisher notes. FAU adopted the most recent plan in April 2021.

This new residence hall is currently in the design process. FAU oversees the building design, as the university’s Design and Construction team leads all major projects. Fisher says HKS Architecture and Balfour Beatty, a construction management firm, are collaborating on this project. 

The UP requested design documents for this residence hall on Sept. 26 but did not receive any by the time of publication.

Future housing concept

While this unnamed dorm is about to make its way to campus in fall 2026, FAU is conceptualizing more housing in the master plan. However, Fisher says there are no plans currently in place.

In the near-term projects section, there is housing referred to as “Gateway Village Apartments + Retail,” which is located where UVA currently resides.

According to Fisher, “This is shown on the master plan as a concept only. There are no current plans or timeline associated with this project.”

Elisabeth Gaffney is the Editor-at-Large for the University Press. For more information on this article or others, you can reach Elisabeth at elisabethgaffreports@gmail.com or DM her on Instagram @elisabethgaff.