Lowell, MA – Students at UMASS Lowell can look forward to living in a brand new, sustainable, “suites” dormitory next fall. Located directly adjacent to the Lowell campus, “Riverview Suites” will house up to 510 students in two bedroom and three bedroom units.
Studying will be made more convenient and comfortable with apartment-like amenities such as kitchens, living rooms and separate bedrooms. There will also be laundry facilities, a fitness center with locker rooms and showers, lounge, game room and multi-purpose meeting rooms. The 170,000 square foot, six floor dormitory will also have ground floor parking for 22 cars and storage for bicycles.
In order to have the dormitory ready for occupancy in the fall, an innovative structural system was used. The design team selected the “Infinity System” which allowed for an aggressive schedule over more traditional framing options. The panelized metal stud system, utilizes the wall framing and composite floor as the structural frame, which allows for lower floor heights and faster construction.
Access to the UMASS campus features a 104 foot pedestrian bridge that connects the dormitory to the university parking lot on Broadway Street. The bridge will allow the students to safely cross over the active MBTA railroad tracks that separate the two properties. The materials used in the span are all American-made with the “Made in America” stickers emblazoned on the beams. The bridge was built in the shop of Lowell Iron and Steel and driven in one piece to the site. Workers used a crane to hoist the massive 32-ton bridge into place and secure it to the support structures.
Neshamkin French Architects of Charlestown, MA is the architect for the project and TFMoran Inc. of Bedford, NH provided the structural engineering. Lee Kennedy of Quincy, MA was selected as the contractor. The dormitory is scheduled to be completed for the fall 2013 semester.
Developer and owner, Jim McClutchy says that the $42 Million project is a “win win” for the City and the University, creating 400 jobs as well as bringing in $250,000 annually in tax revenues. His company, Soho Development will lease the dormitory to the University for 15 to 30 years.