High-rise dormitories begin at SEMO State

Construction of the first two of four high-rise dormitories begins next to the Greek housing complex, and southeast of the Magill Hall of Science, at Southeast Missouri State College in 1965. The two dormitories were opened to students in the summer of 1967. (G.D. Fronabarger photo)

April 24, 1964 Southeast Missourian

Regents Approve Building Proposal

The State College Board of Regents Thursday gave its approval to the general scheme and plan for a new 40-room, $1,150,000 classroom building on Pacific street and to a multi-story approach for new dormitory construction in the Home of the Birds.

President Mark F. Scully said the classroom building, to be erected with funds appropriated by the Legislature, may be ready for bids by fall.

The plans call for a classroom wing to front on Pacific street southward from Normal, with an extension down Watkins drive. A 500-seat theater that will serve as a workshop for theater classes, for lectures and for general purposes will extend eastward.

The college has acquired a portion of the property on the site and is in the process of obtaining the remainder.

A debate over relative merits of multi-story or high-rise dormitory construction vs. buildings of lesser height was decided in favor of the former. The architect had preferred two six-story dormitories spread over a wider area, while the Campus Planning Committee advocated higher buildings, believing the lower ones did not fit the ravine site in the Home of the Birds.

Jack Swing, a practicing architect in Champaign, Illinois, and member of the architecture faculty at the University of Illinois, was selected as arbiter and the high-rise approach was adopted.

The two dormitories will be 12 stories in height and will house a total of 788 students, 394 in each. The dormitories will be centered on a third building, a dining-social center which also will serve two more 12-story dormitories that can be erected in the same area in the future. Funds for the work will come from a long-term loan from the Federal Housing and Home Finance Agency. Authorization has been given for $3,000,000 for the construction program.

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