These new six-story residence halls, joined by a central lobby, provide a unique living-learning community lifestyle by housing all first-year students in the heart of campus. The residence halls are connected via an underground tunnel to Potter Hall, another freshman residence that opened two years earlier. Five classrooms are contained on the lower level to accommodate First Year Seminar courses.
Facing the newly formed quadrangle, the brick and limestone-base structure features an octagonal stair tower that unites the two sides in the center of the building. The tower is topped by a traditional cupola designed as a nod to Belmont’s signature Bell Tower. Even the buildings’ names signal Belmont’s commitment to its rich history. One hall honors a longtime university trustee for her years of service to Belmont and in gratitude for an endowed scholarship. The other hall remembers the heritage of the site’s original antebellum estate, which included a bear house.
The close proximity of the freshmen residences to one another and to all academic buildings provide an ideal learning community for incoming freshmen classes. Lining one side of the quadrangle, these two joined residence halls create a visual terminus for historic Acken Avenue, and a destination for the freshman housing for Belmont’s growing student body.
Photos by Scott McDonald © Hedrich Blessing; © Kyle Dreier Photography
