Future campus apartment options uncertain

Raymond Jackson

Chinook Writer

Following graduation in May, Casper College’s Wheeler Terrace apartment building closed for demolition. Casper College staff have not yet decided what to do with the original building site. Without Wheeler, the college’s apartment style housing options will be cut off entirely with plans for a new building still up in the air. 

Since opening its doors in 1970 for young families and sophomores, the building faced several issues with where and how it was built. Vice President of Student Affairs Dr. Corey Peacock stated that the site suffered from asbestos insulation, underground water intrusion, and a general lack of upkeep. Peacock added that updates to its MEP system (mechanical, electrical and plumbing) would cause more problems than solutions. 

“For us to extend the useful life of that building, we would have had to have put a significant investment into replacing all of those systems,” said Peacock. “And the reason that we didn’t want to do that with Wheeler is, and I wasn’t alive when it was built, but it’s not the best building site.” 

New apartments replacing Wheeler are still being considered, but the apartments would be built elsewhere. Peacock said a parking lot is being considered as an option for the Wheeler Terrace location. 

Several companies have been recruited to work on a comprehensive plan for such a building. Cyan, a company conducting CC’s housing study, is finding that students prefer apartment-style living on campus. In regards to the current on-campus living option – the residence hall – Residence Hall Area Coordinator Elizabeth Dobson said that improved air conditioning, flooring, kitchens, beds, and laundry facilities are several priorities in what the residence halls are looking to improve. 

“There’s a lot of moving pieces and we can’t just say ‘yeah we’re going to build a new facility’ even though there’s clearly a demand for it and we would love to fill that demand,” Dobson said. “There is so much to consider in terms of the long-term goals of our college and what projects we already have going… it’s a larger conversation that I’m lucky to be a part of.” 

With potential new housing opportunities, the budget for such a project is concerning. Peacock said that a 125-bed apartment style building comes in at an estimated $26.6 million to finance. An option for a 36-bed is estimated to cost $8.6 million. 

“That was the other side of what we asked this company to do was not only measure demand, but also look into what would it cost for us to build a new complex and how would we make that work in terms of how much we charge students to live there,” Peacock said. “The thing that students might not realize is when you look at academic buildings on a college campus like Casper College, a public campus, the state will usually fund about half of the cost of those buildings, and then we usually fundraise for the rest.”

New housing at CC may be on the horizon, but work is being done to improve the current standard of living and availability of the residence hall. Without Wheeler Terrace, housing options are limited for the time being. However, students will still be able to live and thrive on campus and have their needs met, with or without additional options. 

“We of course have to operate from the perspective of it may not be in the budget — it may not be in the financial card — but I will always advocate that apartment style living options that are specifically available to students versus external outside of campus where they’re available to anyone,” Dobson said.