P3 Student Housing Project Moves Forward at UNC Wilmington

Located in the southeast area of the UNCW campus, the development’s first phase is scheduled to service students for the Fall 2020 semester and will deliver 1,038 beds in a pod-style configuration for first-year students.

The project at full build-out will deliver 1,814 student beds.

WILMINGTON, NC—Balfour Beatty Campus Solutions, which is headquartered in Philadelphia, has closed on a public private partnership to develop a multi-phased on-campus student housing project at the University of North Carolina Wilmington here.

The development, which will be completed in two phases, will house approximately 1,814 students and provide a number of amenities including group study and collaboration spaces and dining space.

Located in the southeast area of the UNCW campus, the development’s first phase is scheduled to service students for the Fall 2020 semester and will deliver 1,038 beds in a pod-style configuration for first-year students. In the second phase, a total of 776 beds in both pod and semi-suite styles will be added for the Fall 2021 semester for second-year students and upperclassmen.

The development will also include more than 3,500 square feet of dining space, as well as DIY space, group study and collaboration areas and a learning center for the sophomore class, which will be constructed in both phases of the project. Once completed, the student housing complex will be managed by the university.

The P3 involved the issuance of $147.6 million in bonds, UNCW officials told Wilmington Biz. Collegiate Housing Foundation, a national non-profit entity, is the project’s residential facility owner and is issuing the project-based, tax-exempt debt financing in connection with the project.

“We’re very pleased to work with UNCW to deliver much-anticipated infrastructure that will enable more students to live on campus at the very heart of this growing institution,” says Bob Shepko, president of Balfour Beatty Campus Solutions. “Our team has worked closely with university leadership on a very thoughtful planning and design effort and we look forward to breaking ground on this exciting new offering for UNCW students.”

The development is being designed by Clark Nexsen Architecture and Engineering and constructed by Balfour Beatty Construction. Collegiate Housing Foundation, a national non-profit entity, is the project’s residential facility owner through an issuance of project-based, tax-exempt debt financing. Upon completion, the housing community will be managed by the University.

Back in August 2018, Balfour Beatty Campus Solutions and Dallas-based developer Wynne/Jackson reported the completion of the second phase of the Northside mixed-use development project at the University of Texas at Dallas.

The two-phase Northside development now services more than 1,500 University of Texas students at the northern edge of campus. The second phase added 900 beds in both mid-rise apartment and townhome styles, featuring studio, one-, two-, three and four-bedroom floor plans.