Middle Georgia State University Hosts Groundbreaking for New Residence Hall on Macon Campus

Author: News Bureau
Posted: Monday, May 13, 2019 12:00 AM
Categories: Students | Pressroom

Macon, GA

Construction on a three-story residence hall for the Macon Campus of Middle Georgia State University (MGA) is underway, with a formal groundbreaking scheduled for 11 a.m. Thursday, May 16.

The $18.5 million project will result in the first residence hall ever built on MGA’s Macon Campus, which opened in 1968 as a small commuter college. In 2010, the owners of a private apartment complex adjacent to the Macon Campus sold the property to the University System of Georgia, which gave what is now Middle Georgia State its first student residence community, known today as University Pointe.

The new residence hall, to be called Lakeview Pointe, will roughly double the number of students who can live and take classes on the Macon Campus.

“This is a history making building project for Middle Georgia State and represents a major step in our evolution as a state university,” said Dr. Christopher Blake, MGA’s president. “Demand for housing on the Macon Campus has long exceeded available space, but soon we will be able to offer a residential university experience to more students.”

Lakeview Pointe will be approximately 73,000 square feet and located just north of the Macon Campus lake near the Columbus Road entrance. The Macon Campus Recreation and Wellness Center is a few hundred yards away, with the dining hall in the Student Life Center just a short stroll over the lake bridge.

More than 300 students will live in the new residential hall. Each unit for students will have two bedrooms with a shared bath. Eight single-occupancy units will be set aside for resident assistants (RAs), while a two-bedroom unit will be reserved for a full-time Residence Life coordinator.

In addition, the new residence hall will include lounge areas and multi-purpose rooms, where the Residence Life staff will host social and educational programming for students. MGA will use the dirt excavated from the building site to create an intramural field behind the new facility.

Brian Harrell, director of Housing and Residence Life, said that Lakeview Pointe will serve freshmen and sophomores while University Pointe, which is an apartment-style community with a pool and community center, will primarily house juniors and seniors.

"The new residence hall has a traditional design that works best for freshmen and sophomores,” Harrell said. “It helps us engage them into all facets of college life and residential living.”

Here is how the new student housing is funded:

In April 2019, the Bibb County Development Authority issued bonds for the building, expected to cost $18.5 million. As is standard for public-private ventures, a local development authority issues bonds to cover the construction costs of the project, as state agencies are prohibited from issuing their own bonds.

The bond issue is backed by housing revenue from the future residence hall. Even though the Development Authority is acting as issuing agency, it assumes no financial risk in the arrangement.

Among the expected guests at the May 16 groundbreaking are Board of Regents members and University System of Georgia officials; state lawmakers; MGA leaders; MGA President’s Advisory Board members; MGA Foundation trustees: local elected officials; faculty and staff; and others.

About 7,800 students take classes at Middle Georgia State University on campuses in Macon, Cochran, Dublin, Eastman, and Warner Robins, as well as online. Three of the campuses – Cochran, Eastman, and Macon – include student residential communities with various room styles. For more information about MGA’s residential options, see www.mga.edu/residence-life.