St. Catharine breaks ground on new dorm

By Jimmie Earls

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These renderings show what the new dorm at St. Catherine will look like after completion.

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These renderings show what the new dorm at St. Catharine will look like after completion.

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Jimmie Earls

St. Catharine College broke ground Aug. 11 on a new student dorm. Pictured from left are: SCC Board of Trustees member Tom Kelly, Vice-President for Advancement Jenna Copple, Dominican Sisters liasion Sr. Rosemary Rule, Director of Radiography Donna Crum

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Sun Staff Writer

St. Catharine College broke ground on a new student dormitory on Aug. 11. The addition, estimated to cost $4.8 million, will provide housing for 74 students, plus include meeting rooms, lounge areas, a kitchen and a multi-purpose lobby. The resident director will have a two-bedroom apartment on site.

“We’re very excited about the new dormitory,” said SCC president William Huston. “That will basically accommodate what we know we have this year.”

To accommodate students who could not find housing on campus, the college has leased the top two floors of the Springfield Inn through Jan. 1, 2009, the target completion date of the new dorm.

Just like the other student housing available on campus, the new dorm will be co-ed, with each floor designated for a particular gender. Each room will have its own restroom, similar to most hotels.

In addition to the new dorm just under construction, the college also hopes to add another dorm in the future.

“We hope to add some junior and senior units just west of the existing dorm complex along the lake,” Huston added.

The college is also putting an additional $60,000 into student activities to keep more students on campus. With more students living on campus, Huston acknowledged the need to have more parking spaces available.

M&J Construction started working on the site package as soon as ground was broken. Contracts for other project areas such as the brickwork and electrical will be awarded later this week.