A large state university in Southern California received a key regulatory approval this month for the construction of a new student housing complex on campus, filling the void of an earlier, criticized design that was rejected.
The University of California, Santa Barbara, expects the $624 million complex called San Benito Student Housing to be completed by 2027 on the northwest corner of campus, according to a statement. The California Coastal Commission, the state agency that regulates development along the Pacific Coast, approved the project this month.
The 24,700-student university has struggled to meet demand for on-campus student housing because of high property values in Santa Barbara. The average asking rent for a multifamily property in Santa Barbara is around $2,500 per unit, higher than the $1,758 national average, according to CoStar data.
An earlier design proposal for the new dorm submitted by billionaire investor Charlie Munger was rejected for its large size, lack of windows and what critics said was its resemblance to a prison. Munger, who died in 2023 and was the former longtime vice chairman of conglomerate Berkshire Hathaway, promised to donate $200 million to UCSB if it used his design.
UCSB then hired the architecture firms Mithun and Skidmore, Owings & Merrill in March 2024 to create new designs. Visuals released by the firms last week showed apartment-style residences that emphasize the surrounding natural landscape.
“Coastal breezes are channeled through a collection of slender residential buildings that define a series of walkways and courtyard gardens,” Seattle-based Mithun said in a project description on its website.
“A central pedestrian promenade unfolds as a gentle series of bridges and terraces that stitches the multibuilding complex together as a cohesive community and offers panoramic views of the adjacent estuary and Santa Ynez Mountains,” Mithun said.
Plans include seven buildings providing 2,225 beds for undergraduate students. The buildings are designed to be set on top of a two-story structure housing student amenities. A pavilion with a sawtooth canopy roof and large clerestory windows are set to house a student center.
“Each building [will be] angled and staggered to capture natural light, ocean breezes, and northward views of the Goleta Slough and coastal range,” Mithun said.
The student housing complex will be located on a 6-acre site where several buildings previously occupied by facilities management were recently demolished.
In a January meeting, the Regents of the University of California expressed concerns that rebuilding efforts in areas of Southern California impacted by the recent wildfires could delay the project because of the lack of available construction labor, according to the Daily Nexus.
Some real estate professionals and academics have urged the adoption of rules in Los Angeles to make it easier for developers to rebuild damaged areas. The Palisades and Eaton fires destroyed 11,200 residential and commercial properties on 40,000 acres across the Los Angeles area. Santa Barbara is 90 miles west of the Pacific Palisades, one of the hardest hit areas.
For the record
Webcor is the construction manager and general contractor. KPFF is providing engineering services. TLS Landscape Architecture is the landscape architect.