South Campus housing returns for the fall after renovation

UB’s two high-rise residence halls on the South Campus are getting their first real makeover in decades, as the university reintroduces city living to the student population.

More than $35 million had been committed to renovating both Clement and Goodyear halls between 2021-25, with the first phase of renovations to be completed by summer. The project allows for the return of nearly 1,000 residential students to the South Campus in the fall.

Both buildings have been offline this academic year, as the renovation project began.

“We’re excited to bring residential life back to the South Campus, a distinctive location for students who appreciate being in close proximity to the energy and culture of the city,” says Brian F. Hamluk, vice president for student life.

“The upgrades we’re making in Clement and Goodyear make this the opportune time to reintroduce students to all that the South Campus has to offer,” Hamluk says. “Over the next several years, UB will be investing tens of millions of dollars to refurbish not only the residence halls, but academic buildings and recreational spaces throughout the South Campus.”

Clement and Goodyear are reopening in the fall just as Fargo Hall — a residence hall in the Ellicott Complex on the North Campus — will be taken offline for a year-long construction project set to begin at the conclusion of the spring semester.

That’s why Goodyear and Clements have been among the stops on recent campus tours for accepted students and their families.

The bulk of the work to be completed this summer will be in Clement, where the residence hall bathrooms will be refinished, new bedroom flooring will be installed, and new flooring and a fresh coat of paint will cover the hallways.

The first-floor lobby, as well as the kitchenettes and lounges in the residence hall, also will be refurbished with fresh paint, new flooring and updated furniture or appliances. Laundry facilities will be renovated during the summer of 2024.

“Clement is really getting the ‘glow up,’ if you will,” says Brian Haggerty, interim director of housing operations. “Over time we have changed the furniture, or we’ve painted the rooms, but we’ve not done different flooring; we’ve done nothing to the bathrooms — so this is a major upgrade to the student rooms.”

Goodyear also will have its bathrooms refinished this summer, but the remainder of the work in that building — painting, flooring, new furniture and appliances — will be completed in the summers of 2024 and 2025.

The residence hall makeovers come as UB begins initial planning for a complete renovation of Clark Hall, the athletic and recreational facility on the South Campus. The design phase is underway.

“We know how important the renovation of our residence halls and recreational spaces are for our students, their engagement on the South Campus and the betterment of this historic campus on Main Street,” Hamluk says. “Students want updated facilities and we’re committed to providing that.”