Aug 12, 2002 By Steve Ostrosky 2 min read

WAYNESBURG – Workers are ahead of schedule on construction of three new dormitories on the campus of Waynesburg College, where officials hope the new housing units will address an ongoing need. The three residence halls are being built along Sayers Avenue and each will hold 24 to 28 units per building. The dorms will be about 5,500 square feet per floor, according to plans.

Dr. Charles Perrine, college vice president for advancement, alumni and church relations, said the crews already are laying block at the sites and are working about a week ahead of the timetable in place for the project.

He said the residence halls will house 152 students and will be smaller and more intimate, apartment-style units for students.

“There has been real demand among our upper level students for nicer on-campus housing that is more like apartments,” Perrine said. “In a very competitive market, we want to give our students the very best we can.”

Over the past few years, the college has been at the “bursting point” with the number of students requesting on-campus housing. Perrine said this year, with a full-time student enrollment anticipated at around 1,200, students could once again feel the housing crunch.

“August usually tells the tale for us as we start to look at the number of students and how many will want housing,” he said.

Perrine said the buildings may be available for use by next summer, but they definitely will be filled next fall.

One of the facilities will contain a ground-floor apartment for the resident director.

Earlier this year, the Waynesburg Borough Zoning Hearing Board granted the college a special exception to permit the construction of the dorms in a residentially zoned area of the borough and granted two variances to the borough’s zoning ordinance in relation to the height of the buildings and the dwelling unit density of the site.

According to plans, each building will be three stories high, but one will appear to be four stories and the others will appear to be 21/2 stories high because of the topography of the site. Sixty parking spaces will be available at the residence halls, exceeding the number required by the borough zoning ordinance.

Perrine said the additional 152 beds will bring the on-campus total to 817 by next fall.

“For the short-term, this should give us just about what we need,” he said.